Ego Homini Lupus
by Friday Knight
Summary: Have you ever wanted to visit your favourite shows world? Majority of people would be happy to. However, when someone, who does not want to be there shows up... "OH MY GOD! I'M IN FUCKING RWBY!" That happens. This is the story, of someone who never wanted to be part of a story.
1. A Rude Welcome

The Emerald Forest. A forest that spans across the majority of Vale. Below the cliff of Beacon Academy the forest thrives. The tranquillity of the forest is so great, that many would argue that even the Grimm there seem to be on a less violent scale. Almost nothing could disturb the forest's natural beauty. The silence was so vast you could hear a pin dro-"WHERE THE FUCK AM I!?"

Several birds scattered from their trees at the sudden explosion of noise. "SERIOUSLY! WHO THE FUCK THOUGHT IT WAS A GOOD IDEA TO JUST TOSS ME IN THE MIDDLE OF A FOREST!?" The source of the noise came from a young man, standing up and glaring at the trees surrounding him, almost as if they had despicable secrets.

"WHERE AM I!?" He shouted to the sky. "WELL!? SOMEONE FUCKING ANSWER ME!" He threw his arms out in anger. He sighed and brought his hands to his head. "Oh for fucks sake where am I?" He ran his hands through his dark brown hair. He suddenly stopped, as his hands came into contact with something that was neither his hair nor his scalp.

"What the fuck?" He muttered, trying to find out what he just felt. He tugged on the strange object, and winced in pain. "What the fuck!?" He ran his hands over the foreign article in fear. "Are these ears!? Are these fucking ears!?"

His hand dived into his pocket to grab his phone and see what on earth was on his head. He extracted his phone from his pocket, and almost dropped it in surprise. "Where the fuck is my phone?!" He exclaimed. The item in his pocket was a translucent panel with two solid end grips. On one of the grips was a small yellow diamond.

The boy dropped the item in shock. "No. No fucking way." He reached into his other pocket to get his wallet. He was glad to see that wallet hadn't changed, but it was what inside that counts. He opened up the wallet to see, not the usual stash of green, but instead there were a bunch of strange plastic cards.

"No!" He flipped his wallet to get his ID card from a slot in the wallet. He took out the card and stared at it. "I don't get it. I don't get it!" He shouted at the card. On the card the boy's name was written. But apparently, the boy didn't agree with that. "CRUE CULLEN!? WHO THE FUCK IS CRUE CULLEN!?"

He then noticed something lying in the grass. He instantly picked it up, hoping that it could somehow help him with this strange situation. Instead, it only worsened it. "It's a hurl. It's made of metal. It's also a gun. OH MY FUCKING GOD! I'M IN RWBY!" He screamed, throwing the hurl away from him, as if it was going to give him a disease.

"Nononononono. I can't be in RWBY." He laughed maniacally. "It's a show. It's just a show. How could I be in a show? I'm a real person. I'm real. I'm real." He gripped his head with his hands in fear. "I'm real. I'm not in a show. It's just a bad dream. It's just a bad dream." He began whacking his head. "Come on. Wake up." He hit himself harder. "Wake up!" He screamed at himself.

He fell to his knees, still hitting himself in the head. "Wake up. Wake up." His voice grew fainter as he buried his head into the ground. Tears began falling from his eyes as he punched the ground. "Wake up. Wake up."

"I'm, I'm not in RWBY. I'm not. I couldn't be." The boy lifted his head from the ground. "But, but I am. I've got animal ears. There's some transforming weapon. I'm in RWBY. I'm in FUCKING RWBY!" He punched the ground one last time, before coming to a realisation.

He slowly got up from the ground, eyes hardened. "I better not be in some weird ass fanfic you hear me!" He shouted to the sky. He then grabbed the same ID card that he dropped to the ground and inspected it.

"Crue Cullen. Sex: M. Age: 17. Species: Wolf Faunus." He reread the last line. "I'm a Wolf Faunus! Fucking seriously!? I'm the Gary fucking Sue of all OC's. If my eyes are silver as well I swear to God!" He yelled to no one.

He scrutinised the card once more. "Hair Colour: Dirty Blonde. Eye Colour: Blue." He relaxed slightly. "Alright. Alright. I'm not secretly Ruby's long lost brother or some shit." He let out a breath. He then picked up the weapon he had thrown away. "A hurl. Seriously. I know I'm Irish but come the fuck on." As he inspected the hurl, he realised something.

"Oh my god. Oh my fucking god." He ran his hand through his hair, briefly touching his new ears. "I'm a Wolf Faunus. My name is apparently Crue Cullen. I use a hurl." He took a breath. "DO YOU WANT TO HAMMER IT IN ANY FUCKING FURTHER, THAT I'M SUPPOSED TO BE BASED ON CÚCHULAINN!?"

He shouted to the sky, as though someone would answer him. "Great. Fucking brilliant. I'm here in some shitty fanfic, and I'm probably not even control of any of my actions." He sighed. Then, looked around as though someone was watching him. He suddenly got an idea and threw his middle finger to the sky. "Ha! Betcha didn't make me do that? Did ya, ya bastard?"

For some reason, the boy thought it would be an exceptional idea to slap himself across his face. The boy's eyes widened at the pain. "Oh my god I fucking knew it! He jabbed a finger at the sky. "I am in some fucking fanfic!"

"This better not be rated 'T'." He told the sky. When nothing responded, his face turned into a scowl. "Motherfucker I will earn that M rating!" He stalked off in a random direction, determined to find a way out of the forest.

"This is the fucking Emerald Forest isn't it?" he asked no one. "If you make me interrupt their goddamn initiation I'm going jump off Beacon." He suddenly stopped. "Oh my god. You're going to make me a student aren't you?" He accused.

"No. Not happening. I'm not fucking with the storyline. Yes season 3 was fucking awful. Yes I cried like a little bitch over Penny. And Pyrrha. But I'm not changing anything. I'm not god for fucks sake." He paused. "And neither are you! You're just some dude with a laptop and too much spare time." As he was walking, he tripped over an exposed root.

"Ow! Son of a… That's your way of telling me you are God aren't you?" When no one replied, he smirked. "Well too bad motherfucker. I'm an Atheist. So suck it!" He marched off with a large smirk on his face. "I'm not going to Beacon. I'm going to be as bystander as possible. Maybe I'll work for Junior or some shit I don't know."

"I mean, that'd mean I'll eventually see Yang. Actually, I don't know when I am in relation to the show." He looked to the sky. "Hey, when the fuck am I?" He shouted up to the clouds. "Give me a sign for fuck sake." It was then, that the boy heard a growl off to his left.

He turned to see a large black head looking directly at him. Bone plates littered the head in many different places, but the one thing the boy was focused on, was the beasts shining red eyes. "Motherfucker." He stated as the beast lunged. The boy yelled and ducked under it.

He gripped his weapon tightly. "How the fuck do I use this!?" He shouted to no one. When the wolf like creature turned around, it roared at him. "Of course the first thing I'm going to fight would be a fucking Beowulf." He growled right back at the Grimm.

"I fucking get it! I'm Cúchulainn. No need to keep reinforcing it!" As the Beowulf jumped at him, he roared and swung his hurl. It connected with the Grimm's head and sent it flying sideways. The boy looked astonished, looking back between where the beast landed and the thing that sent him there.

"I take it back this thing is fucking awesome!" He exclaimed, looking over the weapon. The Beowulf wasn't down for the count however. Instead, it slowly got up, snarling. The boy looked at it, and then back to the weapon.

"Alright, point the barrel at the thing I want to die." He flipped the hurl around so that fat end was pushing against his shoulder. The trigger was where the hurl started to curve into its base, and the small handle at the top acted as a sight. "You put a lot of thought into this thing didn't you." He muttered as he lined up the shot.

The Beowulf howled and ran towards him. He pulled the trigger, and a single bullet shot from its barrel. It nailed the Beowulf right in the leg, causing it to keel over in pain. "Damn! That is some recoil." He complained, rubbing his shoulder.

The Beowulf made to get up, but the boy shot it once more. "Wow. I actually feel kinda shitty shooting it like this. I mean, I know it's supposed to be a mindless beast and all that shit. But still." He stared at the Beowulf as it struggled to stand.

He noticed how its hair seemed to stiffen. His eyes widened slightly. "Wait a minute. That's right! I'm in a fucking show. This thing isn't even real. I'm not gonna feel bad about it. I've killed video game characters in worse ways than this." He pulled the trigger once more, and the Beowulf slumped to the ground.

"Well, that was my firs-" He stopped himself. "Second. Second kill." He frowned as he looked to the sky. "You better not have picked me just because of that. I swear to fuck." He watched as the Beowulf dissolved into nothingness.

"You know, I've always wondered. Do they go back to Salem and she makes more, or do they just," he waved his hands and wiggled his fingers. "stop." He then realised something. "Oh my god. I'm talking to myself. That's the first sign of insanity." He then realised, another thing.

"Wait no. I'm not talking to myself. I'm talking to the big fucker up in the sky who, is, controlling, me. Ok yeah that didn't help." He sighed to himself.

"I'm going insane amn't I." He kept walking, head downcast. "Well. If I'm gonna go crazy, might as well have some fun." He inspected his hurl once more. "So. What the fuck can this thing do?"

He noticed a small button near the handle of the hurl. He pressed it hesitantly, and there was a sudden whirring. The flat end of the hurl collapsed upon itself, making it skinnier and turning it into a- "Sword?" The boy looked at his weapon. "Wait. Why the fuck is it blue?" The weapon did have a metallic blue sheen to it. "I mean, that's not even my favourite colour. Why couldn't you have made it green? Hell I would've settled for purple."

He swung his weapon around a few times, getting used to it. It didn't change in weight, but the motion of swinging it became easier. "I wonder how it does in a fight." He muttered, then his eyes widened immensely. "Wait wait wait I didn't mean-" He was cut off by a growl off to the left.

Another Beowulf had appeared, snarling at the Wolf Faunus. "You motherfucker." He growled as he held the sword in both hands. Both combatants sped towards each other, the Beowulf leaping towards him.

He ducked under the beast and slashed his sword along its chest, causing the Beowulf to howl in pain. "How the fuck did I do that?" He asked, looking at the weapon he held. The Beowulf roared at him and sped towards him.

"Oh no you don't." He exclaimed, slashing at it with one hand. The Beowulf's head flew from its body, black blood spurting out of the stump of its neck. "Dude! That's fucking gruesome. I can't believe you had me do that!" He watched as the body twitched, before eventually becoming still and starting to disintegrate.

"Guess you really are going for the M rating huh?" He muttered, lightly kicking the corpse. "Wait a minute." He suddenly thought. "M rating?" His hands instantly went to his trousers, pulling them out so he could peer down. "Oh thank god it's still there." He sighed in relief, releasing the hem of his trousers.

"Hold the fuck up." He opened up his trousers again. "WHY THE FUCK IS IT BIGGER!?" He shouted at his crotch. "I mean what-no it was always this size." He closed it up and looked around suspiciously. "Oh fuck, you're planning on getting me to fuck one of them." He realised, his hands instantly going to his head in shock.

"Not Ruby. She's fifteen. I don't give a fuck if this is fake or real, I'm not fucking a fifteen year old." He stalked off, waving a finger at the sky. "Hell, no one from the main cast. I've got my own damn ships you know!"

"Granted half of them are completely fucked thanks to the finale." He mused. "And not in the good way." He said to himself.

"Also where the fuck am I going?" He asked, still walking in a random direction. "I better not find that cave. You know the one I'm talking about. I'm staying faaar away from that thing." He gripped his weapon in his hand.

"Or are you just doing this to give me a chance to figure out everything I can do with this." He clicked the button that changed the sword back into a hurl. "What else is there? Can I like, hold the trigger or something?" He did so out of curiosity.

Surprisingly, nothing happened. Then, after two seconds, something began to form out of the barrel. "What the fuck…" He watched as the thing took on a spherical shape and grew in size. "It's a bloody slither!" He reached out under it, preparing to catch it once it had finished.

It fell into his hand. A burning sensation like no other coursed through his hand, shooting pain up his arm. "SON OF A FUCK!" He yelled, tossing the ball skywards. It was made of dust, so of course it would cause pain to him. Unfortunately, he didn't know that. "That!" He brought his hurl back over his head. "HURT!" He swung the hurl, connecting it with the ball and sending it flying.

After he had finished panting in both anger and pain, he came to a grim realisation. "That hurt. That hurt. That means I can be hurt." He clutched his weapon close to his chest. "I can be hurt. That means I could, I could…" He didn't want to say it. He would rather do anything than say it.

"I could d-" A large explosion, as well as an equally loud roar cut him off. Looking to where the explosion came from, he realised that it was because of him hitting the dust ball. "Ohh that's not good." He heard something barrelling through the trees towards him. It was quite a distance away, but it also wasn't alone. "Guess these ears are good for something." He said as he sprinted away from the noise.

As he ran, he noticed something in the distance that was steadily growing closer. "Is that the fucking temple!?" He shouted. "I told you, I'm not interrupting the damn initiation!" He exited the tree line, pleased to see no one else. "Ok. Now we're getting somewhere."

Unfortunately, he wasn't the only one that exited the tree line. Four Ursa, two Beowulf and a Deathstalker chased after him. After a glance back, and a loud scream that wasn't very manly, he sprinted as fast as he could.

He approached the temple, only to find it damaged. "Well it looks like I'm at least past the first half of volume 1." He thought. He stopped on the edge of the broken bridge and spun around to face the oncoming Grimm. "If I'm gonna die, I'm not gonna go down like a bitch." He held the trigger and formed another dust ball.

"SUCK A DICK!" He roared as he swung his hurl, connecting it with the ball. The ball went flying right into an Ursa's face. When it made contact, it exploded, causing damage to the other Grimm around it. "Damn, that's gonna hurt like a bitch."

The Ursa that was hit by the ball fell forward, it's face completely destroyed due to the explosion, exposing both its bone mask and actual bone. The other three Ursa roared in vengeance. "Bring it on you bear fucks!" He roared back, changing his hurl into its sword form and rushed the Grimm.

One of the Beowulfs dashed forward, taking the charge of the Grimm. The boy dipped under its swing and slashed off one of its legs. He stood back up and spun, taking off its head too. A claw suddenly swung at him, and he brought up his sword to block. He skid back a small bit due to the force behind it.

Strange instincts kicked in as the boy rolled to the side. He didn't know why he did it, but he was glad he did. The Deathstalker had been two seconds away from plunging its tail into him, but instead it was now stuck inside another Ursa. The Ursa roared in agony as venom ran through its veins. The Deathstalker tried to tug its stinger out, but only succeeded in angering the Ursa more.

The boy took this opportunity to run towards the tail and bring his sword back over his head. He roared as he swung the blade down where the stinger and tail connected. The Deathstalker squealed in agony as its most important hunting tool became separated from it. The Ursa that had been struck with the stinger now fell to the ground, lifeless.

There was only two Ursa, a Beowulf and a stingless Deathstalker left now. The boy smirked as he watched the numbers dwindle. "Wow, I never thought killing could be fun." He then stopped himself. "Wow that sounded crazy out of context. Hell even in context it sounded nuts." A howl brought his attention back to the fight.

The Beowulf had stood up on its hind legs and let loose a low howl. From behind him in the forest, several more howls echoed that one. "Calling for backup huh?" He asked the beast rhetorically. "Well, I know when to get the fuck outta dodge."

With that, he sprinted away from the Grimm, intent on getting to somewhere safe. As he ran, he heard something scuttling after him. Glancing back, he saw the Deathstalker approaching him rapidly. He turned his sword back into a hurl and turned around. He began firing at the Deathstalker, aiming for its eyes.

He managed to hit one, but after that it put its claws in front of its face, protecting his eyes. "They learn." He muttered as he turned tail and ran once more. As he ran, he noticed movement in the bushes to his side. A black claw swung at him. He barely managed to get his hurl up in time to block it.

Unfortunately, he was sent flying due to the force. He landed on the ground with a tumble, dirt kicking up as he landed. He got back on his feet immediately, but was unable to block the swing that came his way.

He cried out in pain and jumped away from whatever hit him. He brought his hand to where he had been hit, and felt warm liquid wash over his hand. His eyes widened as he held his hand up to his face. "Blood. There's blood. That means I don't have aura. That means I can die easier." His voice became slightly hysterical near the end.

As he was too focused in his own pain, he failed to notice the two Ursa approaching him. They roared as one and smacked him with a paw each. He was sent flying back, to the temple. He hit a pillar and cracked his head against it. He fell to the ground, coughing up blood. "There's no way this could get any worse."

A squawk proved him wrong, as a huge Nevermore landed just before him. It roared at him, blowing his hair back. Something inside him snapped. "NO!" He roared as he swung his weapon upwards, cutting the Nevermores neck. "NOT THE BIRDS! NOT THE BIRDS!" He roared as he hacked away at it.

The Nevermore gurgled, its own blood beginning to choke it. "NO! NO! NO!" Black ichor spurted out from the dying beast, covering the boy in head to toe in it. He continued to hack away at its neck, even after it lost the ability to think. Once the Nevermore had taken its last breath, he laughed maniacally. He jumped up on top of the quickly decaying corpse to look at all the other Grimm that had gathered.

They appeared actually hesitant to attack him, even though several more were now on the scene. "IF I'M GONNA BE STUCK IN THIS FUCKING WORLD, I'M GONNA MAKE SURE YOU FUCKS KNOW MY NAME!" He roared. "MY NAME IS CRUE CULLEN, AND YOU'RE ABOUT TO FUCKING DIE!" He let out a howl terrifyingly similar to that of a real wolf, and jumped into the fray, a crazed look in his eye.

…

In his office, Ozpin sipped a mug, staring at the strange boy who had just been picked up by the cameras. "Well, that's an interesting battle cry." He mused, staring the boy's moves as he slashed through Grimm as though they were paper.

"Ozpin, team JNPR are here." Glynda informed him. Ozpin nodded, acknowledging her and allowing their entrance.

JNPR walked through the door, all of their heads momentarily staring at the vast amount of gears on the ceiling. Pyrrha was the first one to come back to her senses. "You wanted to see us sir?" She asked, causing the others to snap back to reality too.

"Yes Ms. Nikos. It would seem that a person has wandered into the Emerald Forest, and is currently engaged against a large amount of Grimm." The others gasped at this.

"Is it a civilian?" Jaune asked.

"Well, that is yet to be proven." Ozpin said peculiarly. He pressed a button on his computer and a screen appeared before the group, showing them the actions of the apparent 'civilian'.

"For a civilian, he's preforming rather well." Ren commented. It was true, he was slashing and hacking away at anything he came across. He even managed to send an Ursa flying with a single swing of his weapon.

"I wonder if he wants to be friends." Nora thought excitedly. Ozpin smiled at the comment.

"Well, he appears to be bleeding heavily, so I feel it best if you get there sooner rather than later." The others nodded, rushing back out of his office to try and get there as fast as possible.

"Why do I feel like there's something extra to all this." Glynda sighed.

"That remains to be seen. But for now, let us just hope he will survive." His eyes turned to the screen, just as the person on it decapitated both ends of a King Taijitu.

"Yes, you must be overcome with worry." Glynda said sarcastically.

Ozpin just sipped his coffee, watching the screen.

"Crue Cullen, hmm."

…

Crue Cullen, was stood upon a mound of Grimm corpses. He howled again, before panting heavily. "Is that, all you got?" There were no other Grimm left, all of them having turned tail and fled once they realised the lack of sanity and fear in the Faunus they were fighting. They may be mindless, but they weren't stupid.

His ears suddenly perked up, having heard a humming noise. He followed the noise and saw something approaching him from the sky. "NO BIRDS!" He yelled as he began shooting at it. The 'bird' shook and turned away, but not before dropping off a few students.

Crue watched as it flew away, and turned his attention to whatever was on the ground. Part of his mind recognised them as unthreatening, but another part was still in high adrenaline mode from the Grimm fight. He roared as he jumped from the Grimm pile and slammed his hurl down. The others just managed to get away, but were still caught in the shockwave.

Nora went further than the others, having been closest to the blast. Crue recognised them as who they were and tried to stop, but neither his body nor brain would listen to him, too high on adrenaline to form rational thought. He formed a dust ball and swung it at Jaune, who deflected it with his shield. The deflection caused it to fly in the direction of Pyrrha, who used her own shield to deflect it back to Crue.

Upon realising his own weapon was headed straight for him, he swung once more, but not at Jaune or Pyrhha. Instead, it was aimed at Ren, who didn't have enough time to dodge. It connected with his stomach and exploded, sending him flying back into a tree. "REN!" Nora cried out, before turning to Crue, a glare on her features.

She ran towards him, her hammer over her back, preparing to swing. Crue met her pace, copying her posture. They both cried out and swung at the same time. The flats of their weapons connected, and they were both sent flying backwards. Nora landed roughly on the ground, but managed to bounce right back up.

Crue, on the other hand, was sent flying back into a stone pillar. His head snapped back and hit the cold rock once again. He felt his consciousness beginning to fade, and so while he still could, he managed to say two words.

"Pretty stars."

He slumped down in front of the pillar, weapon falling out of his grasp. The others member of JNPR stood up, staring at the fallen enemy. "Well, that was a thing." Jaune said.

"I can't believe he attacked us." Nora cried out after helping Ren up. "I mean, we were here to save him, you'd think he'd show a little gratitude." She complained.

"I don't think he was in a stable state of mind." Ren said, staring at the person who had attacked them. "He did just fight a horde of Grimm, it would be understandable if he was a little, high strung." He eyed the pile of disintegrating bodies.

"Huh, he's a Faunus." Jaune informed them, having stepped closer to him and noticed his ears. He lightly prodded him with his scabbard. "He's also completely unconscious." He bent down to pick him up.

"Ren, a hand please." Ren stepped forward, much to Nora's annoyance and Pyrrha's concern.

"Shouldn't we make sure he can't hurt anyone?" She expressed her worries. "Namely us."

Jaune waved off her concerns. "Don't worry about it Pyrrha. We were caught off guard cause we weren't expecting him to attack. Now that we know, I'm sure we'll have no problem dealing with him." He smiled at her, which caused her to forget all her worries and blush lightly.

Nora rolled her eyes at her friend's attraction. "But he hurt Ren!" She argued. Ren put a hand on her shoulder to relax her.

"Don't worry. My aura cushioned the blow." He reassured her. Nora still retained a pout, but seemed to be fine with Crue now.

"Ren. I appreciate the reassurance, but I still need your help." Jaune told him, struggling to keep Crue aloft. Ren instantly grabbed both his legs and hauled him onto the Bullhead which had landed close by.

"I doubt he's a huntsman, he hasn't got his aura unlocked." Ren deducted, inspecting the boy's wounds. Jaune grew a sheepish smile and agreed with him, ignoring the look he got from Pyrrha. "But, with the way he fought you could hardly call him a civilian."

"Then what is he?" Jaune asked, the rest of the team staring down at the unconscious teen.

"A mystery."

* * *

 _YOOOOOO. That was weird. Why'd I do that? Idk, maybe I'm secretly in a fanfiction too. Point being, I am so glad I've written this. This thing has been on my mind for I don't even know how long._

 _This is a trope that I've seen in several fandoms and fanfictions. Fan of show ends up in shows world. But, I thought, what if they were a cynical asshole who really didn't want to be there. And thus, Crue Cullen was born._

 _So yeah. This is a thing. I don't have a consistent uploading schedule with it, but I'll try. I hope you like the story, and I hope you let me know what you think. Until then._

 _-Friday_


	2. Strange Meetings

"BIRDS ARE EVIL!" Crue shouted from the top of his lungs, before collapsing back into the hospital bed he currently resided in, instantly passing out.

The other occupants of the room, Ozpin and Glynda Goodwitch just stared at the sleeping body. "Where do you find these children Ozpin?" Glynda sighed. Ozpin said nothing, simply sipping his coffee, curious as to the boy's outburst.

…

Eventually, Crue rose from his slumber without shouting. He slowly blinked his eyes, looking at the bright white ceiling of the hospital room. "Either I'm in heaven or a hospital. Please be the latter." He begged.

"You would be correct there Mr. Cullen." He heard a voice say. He sat up instantly, finding the source of the noise. There stood Ozpin, peering at him over his tiny spectacles. Crue froze up, realising what would more than likely happen.

"Um, hello…" He said hesitantly. "Where am I? And who are you?" He asked. Better to lie than have him think he's crazy.

"You may call me Ozpin. You are currently in the infirmary of Beacon Academy. A school which I am the headmaster of, and teaches its students how to defend the world against Grimm." Ozpin informed him. Crue slowly nodded. He knew this already of course, but was he really about to tell him that he's not from this world and he is part of a show? Of course not.

"And, why am I here?" He asked, then looked around the room. "I mean, I'm guessing I got hurt." He suddenly felt a pain in his chest. He looked down to see several bandages running across his chest. His hands glided over them gently, feeling the stinging sensation that arose from the simple touch.

Ozpin gazed at the boy. "What do you remember?" He asked calculatingly. Crue blinked at him.

"Uh. I remember… Waking up in a forest. Then, I was walking, and something came at me. I hit it away using my…" He suddenly began rapidly patting the bed. "Where is it? Where's my weapon?" His breathing became ragged, genuinely worried about its whereabouts.

"It is in a safe place, along with your clothes and valuables." Ozpin calmly informed him. Crue sighed and laid back down in the bed. "Do you remember anything else?" Crue faked a concentrating look on his face.

"I feel like I hurt someone." He said hesitantly. "I didn't hurt anyone did I?" He could remember hitting Ren with the dustball, and was concerned for him. Ozpin smiled gently.

"Yes, but not seriously. The person you hit just so happened to be well versed in aura, and was therefore practically unharmed." A look of relief crossed Crue's face, knowing Ren was alright. "Although, speaking of aura," Ozpin began, causing Crue to raise an eyebrow. "You do not appear to have yours unlocked.

"I don't?" He asked. He figured that out by himself when the Beowulf slashed his chest.

"Yes, so it is quite amazing that you are still alive after fighting against a horde of Grimm. How did you not die?" The question was rather morbid, but it got Crue thinking.

" _Because the asshole Author hasn't had me do what he wants yet."_ Crue thought. Slowly, he came to an actual realisation as to why he was still alive.

"Because I'm too stubborn." He chuckled. Ozpin simply raised an eyebrow.

"I beg your pardon?" He asked, making sure he heard the boy correctly.

"I'm too stubborn to die. I don't know why I remember that, but I do. I feel like I've survived things most normal people shouldn't have simply out of stubbornness." He stared at his hands. "I didn't die, because I didn't feel like dying."

Ozpin smiled at his reasoning. "Someone with the ability to stave off death, simply because he doesn't feel like it." Ozpin chuckled lightly. "We could use someone like you at Beacon."

Crue blanked. " _Of course. Of fucking course you would do this!"_ He yelled inside his mind. "I'm flattered, but I think this is a decision I will need some time to consider." Ozpin nodded in understanding.

"Of course." He stood up from the chair he was sitting on. "If you don't mind, some people would like to talk to you." Ozpin said as he neared the door. Crue looked confused, but nodded.

When Ozpin opened the door, four people fell on top of each other. Crue's eyes widened as team JNPR stood up awkwardly, brushing themselves off. "Crue, meet team JNPR, the team that was sent to retrieve you from the Emerald Forest." Ozpin introduced them, not that they needed any introduction to him.

"Uh, hi." Jaune said, waving a hand at the bedridden Crue. Crue nodded, waving back, almost in disbelief that they were standing in front of him.

"I'm Jaune. Jaune Arc." He told him, holding out a hand. Crue shook it, marvelling at the fact it felt like a real hand.

"My name is Pyrrha Nikos." The redheaded Spartan smiled at him. "It's a pleasure to meet you." It took ounce of willpower that Crue had to not start crying. He shook her hand, gripping it tightly. Pyrrha gripped back just as tightly, unsure as to what to do in the situation.

"I am Lie Ren." Ren introduced himself, once Crue had let go of Pyrrha. "This is Nora." He gestured to the other redhead, who was glaring at Crue.

"Uh, is there any reason in particular she looks like she wants to kill me?" Crue asked shakily.

Ren sighed. "Well, during our rescuing of you, you accidentally hurt me. And she appears to still resent you for it." Ren sent a disapproving glance to the Valkyrie.

"I hurt you?" Was all Crue said. The entire team nodded. "I, I didn't mean to. I was still high off the adrenaline. I didn't realise you weren't trying to hurt me." Crue looked down to the sheets, genuinely upset about attacking what was part of the main cast.

"I do not blame you. I understand you weren't in control of your actions. You are forgiven." Ren told him. Crue smiled up at him, thankful that there was no bad blood.

"Thank you." He said. Ren nodded, but Nora still looked annoyed at him.

"What were you doing down there anyway?" Jaune asked.

" _Becoming part of some shitty fanfiction."_ Crue thought. "I don't know. I don't remember anything before I woke up in a forest." He told them.

"It is possible you have amnesia." Ozpin commented. Crue almost forgot he was there at that point. "Can you recall nothing from before the time you awoke in the forest?"

" _Well now I've got an alibi."_ Crue thought. "I, I'm not-" There was one memory that stood out to him. Of all the memories that ran through his mind of his own world, there was one that came to the forefront of his mind.

"Only one." He said, clutching his sheets. "But, that's only because it's been scarred onto my mind." The others glanced at each other, curious as to what memory he could recall.

"I was young. I can't remember how old. I was on a picnic. With my family." Tears started to fall from his eyes. "We were having fun. We were on holiday. I was playing with my hurley. But, I hit it into a nest of Nevermore. They were only small, but that didn't make them any less deadly."

"They attacked us. I was only able to survive because I had something to fend them off with. Then, it got worse. A Beowulf appeared, and killed them." He gripped his sheets so tightly that they might rip. Each of the listeners showed looks of horror on their faces. All but Ozpin, who just stared intensely. "It killed all of them. I managed to kill it by lodging the ball I was using in its throat. After that, help came. But there was nothing they could do. They were already dead."

Crue sniffed, his eyes hardening. "That's the only thing I remember. And I wish I could forget it. But I can't." All of this was true. With a few altercations to make it seem as though he was part of their world. In reality, the group of Australian Magpie that Crue had disturbed. The most violent of all birds attacked him and his family. The Beowulf in question had been a Dingo. He was on vacation in Australia with his family, and would never forget it.

Neither would the members of JNPR or Ozpin. After hearing that, they could not help but feel sorry for Crue. Even Nora felt some semblance of pity for the boy. Crue shook his head. "I think that's the reason I tried to be a Hunter." He figured he may as well keep the story going, once more with a few choice changes. "If I could be a hunter, I could have saved them. If I had my aura unlocked, I could have protected them."

Once more, this was all true. Crue was not a very fit child. He had trouble running long distances and playing any physical sport. The only reason he took up hurling was because his father wanted him to 'carry on the tradition'. And so, he did. And that is the only reason he was still alive.

He held his head low, not making eye contact with anyone. Everyone in the room held different opinions of him now. Jaune felt sorry for him, not even able to imagine a life without his family. Ren and Nora both shared a strange sense of familiarity, both of them also being orphans. Pyrrha didn't know how to feel, having never known what loss felt like.

Ozpin stared at him with a calculating gaze. "Well, I can assure you that if you choose to stay here you shall become a fine huntsman." Crue glanced up at Ozpin, a slightly annoyed look on his face.

"As I said. I'll need time to consider the offer." He frowned and stared down at the bed. "Besides. I can't really be a hunter without an aura can I?" He asked rhetorically. Jaune looked as though he was going to say something, but thought better against it.

Crue knew he was going to say how he didn't have one originally, but with Ozpin there he did the wise thing and shut up about it. "I understand." Ozpin said, starting to leave the room. "You will need to remain here for around two more days. I hope by the end of that time you shall have come to a decision."

He left the room, leaving Crue alone with the team he had accidentally attacked. "So," Jaune tried to start a conversation. "Uh, you were pretty good with that weapon of yours. What is it?"

Crue smiled. "It's called a hurley. I don't know where it is right now. Ozpin said it was in a safe place." He shrugged. " _Which probably means I'm not getting it back until I agree to be part of this."_

"Well just so you know, the hospital food sucks." Jaune joked. Crue actually managed to laugh at theat.

"I'll keep that in mind." He told them. They all managed a small smile, beside Nora who still slightly resented him for hurting Ren.

"It was very nice meeting you." Pyrrha told him, smiling brightly. Crue smiled back, a small tear to his eye.

"Nice meeting you guys too." He told them. They exited the room, each waving goodbye to Crue, who smiled and waved back. Once the door closed, Crue's smile dropped.

"I can't believe you're doing this to me." He whispered. "I already told you, I'm not changing the time line. I can't do that. I just, can't."

He punched his bed. "I can't believe you made me tell them that. I've told no one else that. You probably know that asshole." Crue scrunched up his face. "Oh, let me guess. This is the 'tragic backstory explained' chapter. Motherfucker."

"Why me? What have I done that could have possibly made you pick me to take part in this hell hole of a story." He lay back down on the bed, staring up at the bright white ceiling. He could clearly smell the scent of disinfectant, and hear people walking up and down halls.

"And you changed my species." Crue muttered, rubbing his new ears. "Wolf ears. I can't believe you. Just so you know, if I catch anyone being racist to me. Or anyone else for that matter, they're dead. I ain't putting up with that shit."

"And you better have put me past the end of Volume 1. I don't want to accidentally out Blake." He yawned as he closed his eyes. "And no harems." He muttered out before falling asleep.

…

"I don't think it's a good idea." Crue awoke to the sound of voices. "How bad could he be?" He heard another voice say. He looked around the room, not finding anyone. "Nora said he was like a wild Beowulf when he's angry."

" _You're shitting me."_ Crue thought. "I doubt that. She was probably just exaggerating." Crue's ears twitched, causing him to finally realise what was going on. " _Guess my ears are pretty sensitive."_ He thought, staring at the door to the infirmary. "Well I still don't think we should go in."

Crue sighed. "I can hear you." He called out, causing the voices to stop. The door slowly creaked open, four different eyes peering through the crack. Crue stared at them, as the door opened fully. There stood the four people Crue was both dreading and anticipating meeting.

"Uh, hi." Ruby said, taking the initiative and introducing herself. "I'm Ruby. This is Weiss, Blake and Yang." She said, gesturing to each person in turn. They each gave a wave of hello.

"Hey. Um, why are you here?" Crue asked, scratching his head. "Did Ozpin send you?" They all shook their head.

"Nope." Yang answered him. "We heard there was a guy here who was 'Evil Incarnate' and 'Doesn't care for ninjas'."

"Was that Nora?" Crue asked. They each nodded. "Oh, well I did accidentally hurt her boyfriend." He sighed. Each of them snickered. "What?"

"They aren't together." Blake answered. "Well, how did Nora phrase it?" He turned to her friends for confirmation.

"I believe there words she used were, 'We're together, but not like, together together'." Weiss answered.

"I don't believe that." Crue answered honestly.

"Yeah," Ruby snorted. "Neither do we." The group got closer to Crue, each of them standing around his bed.

"Are you guys a team too?" Crue asked, sitting up.

"Yeah, we're team RWBY." Ruby said proudly.

"But you're Ruby." Crue replied, scratching his head.

"What she means is our team name is RWBY, R-W-B-Y." Weiss corrected.

"So it's made up of the first letters of your names?" Crue asked. They nodded. "JNPR makes so much sense now." The others giggled at his confusion.

Crue smiled softly, seeing them all smile. " _Volume 3 really did a number on them."_ His eyes wandered to Yang's right hand. " _I guess I could… NO! I'm not messing with it!"_ He blinked and turned his attention back to them.

Before he said anything, he sniffed the air. "Why do I smell cat?" He asked himself aloud. All of team RWBY's eyes turned to Blake, causing Crue to smirk. "Oh, so you do know." He smiled at them. They all wore looks of shock, but none of them looked as half as shocked as Blake.

"You knew?" She asked. Crue nodded. "How?"

"I dunno." Crue shrugged. "I could just sort of, tell." He scratched behind his ears in confusion. " _I could tell because I've seen them before."_ He thought.

"Well, if you know what she is, do you know who I am?" Weiss asked hesitantly.

Crue pointed to Ruby. "She said you were Weiss."

"Well, yes I am. But my full name is Weiss Schnee." She told him. Crue blinked.

"I don't get it." He told her. " _Of course I do. But as far as everyone else in concerned I have amnesia."_

"What do you mean you don't get it?" Blake spoke up. "Do you not know what the Schnee name means for us?" Crue shook his head.

"I don't know anything really." He informed them. "Apparently I have amnesia." He shrugged. "Why? Is she bad or something?" He asked Blake.

Blake looked like she was about to go on an hour long rant as to how Weiss was a terrible person who enslaved Faunus, but after a glance at her teammates, she decided not to. She cleared her throat and began speaking. "Weiss, is not a bad person. Her family," Weiss coughed into her hand, shooting Blake a look. "Her father," Weiss nodded in approval. "Is a bad person."

"The Schnee Dust Company is known for its controversial labour forces and questionable business partners, and Weiss' father constantly abuses Faunus labour, paying them less than the minimum wage, not allowing them housing, and generally poor treatment of Faunus." Blake informed him.

Crue turned to Weiss to see if she agreed with what she was saying. She nodded hesitantly. "So, what you're saying is, I should hate her because of her father?" Crue asked, confused. Blake nodded, as did Weiss, slowly with a frown on her face.

"That's stupid." Crue stated bluntly. Everyone's eyes widened. "You can't hate someone just because of their parentage." He turned to Weiss. "Are you anything like your father?"

"No!" She said, aghast at the idea. "In fact the reason I attend Beacon Academy and not Atlas Academy is to spite him." Crue smiled.

"Then if you're not like your father why should I hate you?" He watched as the realisation dawned up Blake and Weiss' faces.

"You're right." Blake said, almost in disbelief. "Weiss, I know we've reconciled already but, I'm saying sorry again."

"I know I can't change what my father has done in the past, but I will do my best to change the future." Weiss told her. They shared a hug, which was met with an 'aww' from both Ruby and Yang.

"Group hug!" Yang called, bringing them close, dragging Ruby into the mix as well. They all voice complaints at the sudden tightness of the hug. Crue chuckled at the sight, seeing them all so close to each other and happy.

Crue's heart clenched upon realising that it wouldn't last forever. Volume 3 would get rid of all those smiles. " _I, I want to help. But I can't. I can't change it."_

"Sorry guys." Yang laughed after releasing her teammates. "I guess I was just so happy seeing your _blonde_ -ing moment." She joked. Everyone groaned, including Crue.

"Goddammit Barb." He sighed. He then realised what he said, and that the others were all looking at him. He blinked several times, trying to convince the others that he was also confused. "Who's Barb?" He asked himself.

" _That was close."_ Crue thought to himself. " _It feels weird as hell basically talking to Lindsay, Barbara, Arryn and Kara."_

"So, we heard you weren't a huntsman but had the skills of one." Ruby told him. Crue's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Well, yeah. I've always wanted to be a huntsman, but I never got my aura unlocked. So, I could never officially be accepted." " _Yeah, that sounds right."_ He told them. The others nodded in understanding, so he figured what he said would pass.

After that, they all talked for a while, RWBY telling them about things that happened, interesting people he should meet. "Are there any other Faunus here?" Crue asked, despite already knowing the answer.

"There's quite a lot of them actually." Blake told him, a pleasant smile on her face. "I haven't really talked to any of them besides two. Their names are Sun and Velvet."

"Sun is a rap-" Weiss caught herself. "Ehem. Sun is a fellow huntsman from a different school." She noticed the look Blake was giving her. "I'm sorry, it's going to take some getting used to. And to be fair, when we first met him he was a stowaway."

Blake rolled her eyes and turned back to Crue. "Velvet is a second year and a member of team CFVY. She's too kind for her own good though." She said with a frown. The others all agreed with her, causing Crue to frown, realising they were probably talking about Cardin.

"What do you mean?" He asked them. They all shared a glance, unsure as to whether or not they should talk about the problems their friend was having.

"Well, she doesn't stand up for herself." Ruby said gently. "And, there's a bully who is constantly picking her. And everyone else too." She mumbled the last bit, but Crue's new advanced hearing picked it up.

"I would've thought he'd have at least toned it down after what happened with Jaune." Weiss complained. "Even before I was aware of Blake, I didn't approve of what he was doing."

Crue frowned and thought to himself. " _Remember what I said earlier about anyone being racist. Yeah, you better let me kick the shit out of Cardin at some point."_ "Why hasn't anyone told a teacher?" Crue went for the age old question.

"Because he never does it when a teacher is around." Blake spat. "It's sickening how easily he gets away with it." She ground her teeth together, eyebrows knitted together in a scowl.

"If I ever catch him being mean to one of us, I'm getting Nora and we're breaking his legs." Yang promised. " _Ah, the good old 'Break his legs'."_ Crue sighed.

"Well, if he tries anything with me I can stand up for myself." He told them, then realised what he said. "That is, if I'm going to stay here."

"Aww, you mean you might not study here?" Ruby pouted. "But I haven't even seen your weapon yet." She began making puppy dog eyes at Crue, who was amazed at just how effective they were.

"Ozpin says he has my stuff in a safe place. So I couldn't show you even if I wanted to. Which I do." He added. Ruby's face fell at the fact she was unable to see a new weapon.

"Don't worry Ruby." Yang reassured her sister. "You haven't seen Sun's weapon up close yet right? That's always something." She bounced lightly, causing her breasts to also bounce. Crue glanced away, but not before noticing something.

On Yangs shirt was her emblem. Blake's was on her tights, Weiss' was on her back. Ruby's… Crue couldn't remember where Ruby's was. But the point was that it stirred a thought within Crue's mind. " _What's my emblem?"_

…

It has been two days since Crue was admitted into the infirmary, and when he woke up today, there were two surprises in store for him. One, was a set of clothes at the foot of his bed. The other, had red hair and a wide smile.

"Hello again." Pyrrha greeted. Crue's insides churned at the catchphrase, how many times had people in the fandom heard it, only to remember that the bright and cheery voice behind it was no longer with them.

"Pyrrha. It's nice to see you again." Crue replied. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" He joked.

Pyrrha laughed lightly in response, only furthering the clenching sensation in Crue's gut. "Well, you recall what you said about wanting to be a huntsman correct?" Crue nodded. "Well, I was thinking over what you said, and I came to a decision."

Verdant orbs stared at Crue. "I wish to, with your permission, unlock your aura." She smiled at him, showing bright white teeth.

"You, you want to unlock it?" Crue questioned. " _This is your doing isn't it! You motherfucker! Why are you making her do this?"_ He shouted in his mind.

"Yes. I thought about what you said the other day. I, myself, have been somewhat privileged, in never knowing loss. I can't imagine the emotions you must have gone through, losing someone so close to you." Crue's mind flashed back to the end of the Volume 3 finale, when she was shot by Cinder.

"I know it must seem rather odd for someone who just met you to want to help you in such a way, but I believe you can do well as a Huntsman. And your ability would only be improved by unlocking your aura." The champion told Crue her reasoning, and he remained silent in response.

"If," He began, causing Pyrrha to look at him hopefully. "If you unlock my aura, would that not take a toll on you?" He clarified.

"Only slightly." Pyrrha reassured him. "If I could put it in layman's terms, it would be similar to lifting a large weight, and once you get it to a certain height it becomes weightless." She explained. Crue knit his eyebrows together in concentration.

"Would it connect us? You using your aura to unlock mine?" He asked her.

"In a sense." Pyrrha told him. "It would certainly bring us closer as friends, but other than a small emotional connection, nothing serious would change." She noticed Crue's raised eyebrow. "I wouldn't know for certain what you are feeling, but I would have a small inkling if you were feeling upset and trying to hide it."

" _Explains why she knew Jaune was upset about something."_ Crue thought. " _If I do this, there's no going back. I'm going to be part of this damn story, and I'm probably going to influence it heavily."_ Crue stared at Pyrrha, her kind grin, her welcoming eyes.

He clenched his fist. " _They've all been so nice to me. Even though I practically attacked them in a fit of rage."_ He thought about RWBY, how happy they looked hugging each other despite the protests. How none of them were injured or broken. " _I can't. I can't just let them die. If I just let them die I'm no better than Cinder. I'm not going to let that happen. I'm going to save them all."_

He looked up to Pyrrha, and nodded in confirmation. "Let's do it." Pyrrha looked overjoyed at the prospect of helping someone become a true huntsman. "Looks like I'm going to be studying here after all." He said with a smirk. " _Just like the damn Author wants."_

Pyrrha smiled back at him. "I'm sure you shall fit in perfectly." With that, she brought a hand up to Crue's cheek. "Now, close your eyes, and concentrate." He did as instructed, recalling how she had done the same action to Jaune during the initiation.

Pyrrha began glowing a deep crimson, and Crue emanated a glow that was a steely blue, much like his eyes. Pyrrha began to recite the incantation to unlock aura. **"** _ **For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all. Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my shoulder, protect thee."**_

Both Pyrrha's and Crue's eyes snapped open when she had finished unlocking his aura. Crue felt a surge of energy flow through him. He could feel his very soul manifesting outwardly, acting as a shield to all things deadly. Crue noticed how tired Pyrrha looked after unlocking his aura "Are you ok?" He asked, not wanting her to be in any form of distress.

"I am fine, thank you." She smiled at him. "It seems I am either lucky or unlucky, as both of the aura's I've unlocked have been exceptionally large." She smiled at him. Crue hoped there was no innuendo in Remnant similar to 'You know what they say about guys with big auras'.

"You've unlocked someone else's before?" Crue asked, despite knowing the answer already.

Pyrrha nodded. "Yes, but that's a secret." She winked at him and brought a finger to her lips.

Crue smiled at her, making a zipping motion with his own lips. Pyrrha smiled at him thankfully. "I suggest you get dressed, Professor Ozpin will most likely want to be meeting you soon." Pyrrha informed Crue, graciously stepping out of the room, allowing Crue to change.

Crue stood up out of the infirmary bed, wobbling slightly after not having used his legs for so long. He walked slowly to the end of the bed where his clothes lay, clutching the railing for support. "You know, with all of the freaking out and killing everything, I never actually got a good look at what I was wearing." Crue contemplated.

He picked up an article of clothing, and let it fold outwards. "Jeans. Black jeans." He mumbled, looking at the pants. "Alright, I can dig it." He laid them on the bed. "Behind door number 2 is…" He whispered to himself, grabbing another piece of clothing.

"Underwear." He face palmed lightly. "Also black. Might as well put these on now." He said, slipping the underwear on under the hospital gown he was wearing. "And now that I've got something covering those…" He trailed off, grabbing the jeans and putting them on. Once he had the jeans on, he took off the gown fully, exposing his chest.

"Wait, did you do that?" He asked, looking down at his chest. A six pack, as well as toned pecs covered his chest. "Alright. Alright, I'm cool with that." He murmured, staring to the sky. "But if I find out you've changed anything else, I'll find a way to punch you in the dick."

He picked up another article of clothing. "Regular white dress shirt." He stared at the item of clothing. The only thing irregular about it was that the buttons, along with the tips of its collar, were a deep black. Crue slowly buttoned up the shirt, looking at himself in a nearby mirror. "Huh, you're actually pretty decent with clothes. Who knew."

He picked up another piece of clothing and stared at it. "Really. You're making me wear a waistcoat?" He asked rhetorically. The waistcoat in question was a pitch black, and matched the jeans he was wearing.

Crue grumbled to himself as he put on the waistcoat. "I don't care if I look good, it's impractical." He complained. He picked up a small piece of cloth. "A tie too. Really?" He let the tie roll out, holding it by the fat end. "And it's blue. Why are you going for blue? I don't even like blue." He began tying up the navy tie under his collar.

He looked down to his feet and wiggled his toes. "Any shoes?" He turned to the pile, and saw that under the bed were the shoes he would be wearing, as well as the socks. "More blue. Great." He pulled on a pair of black socks, and then started putting on his shoes, which were very similar to Jaune's, only they were a dark blue.

"Alright. All dressed up and nowhere to be." Crue said, lightly scuffing his shoes on the ground. "Anything else you want me wear with this _oh so sophisticated_ suit?" He asked rhetorically. He noticed a silver circle on the bed. "Rhetoric is a foreign concept to you isn't it." He said, grabbing the circle.

Crue sighed, looking up what he held in his hand. It was a pocket watch, and engraved on the front of it was the head of a wolf made out of Celtic knots. "We've been over this before." Crue said calmly. "I already know I'm fucking Cúchulainn!" Crue clicked open the pocket watch, and fell silent at what he saw.

"Where did you get this?" He muttered, clutching the pocket watch tightly. "Where did you get it and why did you change it!?" Within the cover of the watch was a picture of five people. Two of them were obviously older, and the other three were all hugging each other. "Where did you get it!?" Crue screamed, staring at the last picture he had of his family.

"Why did you change it?" His voice broke upon seeing the picture he cared most about in the world edited to fit this ones. Each of them had an extra set of ears. His father had the same ears as him, like a wolf. His mother, and two sisters, both had fox ears, matching their red hair.

"Do you think this is funny?" Crue asked. "Taking some guy out of his comfort zone, and throwing him to a place where shit could quite easily kill him. Do you?!" He clutched the pocket watch in his hand before snapping it shut.

"I've accepted that bullshit name you've given me, but I'm not going to accept you changing my family." He made his way to the door, putting on a fake smile when Pyrrha greeted him.

" _I'm not."_

* * *

 _And so the second chapter of this satirical bastards story continues. And I realise i never really gave a good description as to what a 'hurl' was. A hurl, is a piece of equipment commonly used in Hurling. If you look up 'Hurl GAA' you should find out what it looks like. Hurling is basically a cross between hockey, and murder._

 _So, he has decided to help out, because he can't stand to see them die, especially now that they are, at least to him, real. Hope you guys like it._

 _\- Friday_


	3. I'm Sleeping WHERE?

Crue rode up in an elevator to Ozpin's office, all the while having an argument between himself and whoever he called 'The Author'. "Look, all I'm saying is that I am not having a harem. I don't care how much you try and force it, I'm not having one. I don't give a shit what laws you change, or make it so that they're 'socially acceptable', I'm not having one."

He leaned against the back of the elevator, a frown on his face. "Especially not a team harem. I've got my own ships to try and sail. Hell, you know what, you help me make them canon and I'll try and follow whatever storyline you've set out for me." He bargained.

Crue cleared his throat. "Alright, number one: Bumblby. No questions there. Second: Arkos. They deserve it after the finale. Actually wait, I'm making sure the finale doesn't happen. Ok, you can put that one on a back burner. Third: Nuts and Dolts. Same as Arkos, I'm making sure she survives, so just sort of, let it float."

"I don't really care who you stick Weiss with. Not to be mean of course. I just never really shipped her with anyone." Crue shrugged. "It is becoming freaky how easily I talk to you." He told 'The Author'. He noticed that the elevator was nearing the top floor. "Alright, time to pretend I haven't been talking with some omnipotent being." He cleared his throat and stood straight.

The elevator doors opened, showing Ozpin sitting pensively behind his desk, hands intertwined and staring at Crue. Beside his desk stood Glynda Goodwitch, staring at Crue over her oval spectacles. "Good mor-" Crue stopped himself, taking out his pocket watch and clicking it open. "Afternoon." He corrected himself, putting it back into his waist coat pocket after checking the time.

"Mr. Cullen. I trust you have come to a decision as to whether or not you shall stay and study at Beacon." Ozpin asked, a small smirk on his features, as though he already knew the answer.

"Well, after immense consideration, weighing out all of the pros and cons, debating whether or not my lifestyle is actually suited for this kind of work," Crue went on. " _If I'm doing this, I'm going to drag it out as much as physically possible."_ "and whether or not I'd have enough money for it, would I actually fit in among Beacon, are there people here who would disrespect or disgrace me due to my heritage, wou-"

He was interrupted by Goodwitch, who snapped at him. "Do get on with it!"

Crue gulped, pulling gently at his tie. "I have decided, that I shall stay." He told them. Ozpin smiled lightly, whereas Goodwitch let out a heavy sigh.

"I am very glad to hear that. If you shall give me a moment, I shall show you to the room you'll be staying in. Before I do, I must have a word with Professor Goodwitch about your curriculum." Ozpin told him. Crue gave a phony salute and returned to the elevator, descending Beacon tower.

"Curriculum? Really? Your excuses are becoming stale." Glynda mocked her employer.

Ozpin chuckled lightly. "That may be so, but I still required him out of the room." He said, standing out of his chair and turning to gaze out at Beacon.

"Ozpin, what on Remnant could this child possibly have that would possess you to let him stay." Glynda asked.

Ozpin said nothing for a moment, staring off into the distance, his mind elsewhere. "I think it is time, I brush up on my fairy tales. Specifically, those from Hibernia."

…

Crue waited in the lobby of Beacon tower, whistling a tune. " _Red like Roses fills my head with dreams and fin-"_ His humming was cut off by a strange thought.

"Are you going to give me theme music?" He asked. "Cause if you are, I want to be able to hear it. Music always makes fighting better, that's why boss battles always have awesome compositions."

A short while later, Ozpin exited the elevator, nodding to Crue to follow him. As they walked, Ozpin handed Crue his weapon, pulling it out from seemingly nowhere. "I believe, you would be wanting this back." Crue nodded his head rapidly, gripping his metal hurl tightly.

Crue followed after his new headmaster, wondering where he was leading him. "I would say that you would require a uniform, but the dress code here is not upheld that strictly, plus your current attire is very similar to that of the uniform. Minus one thing of course." Ozpin whispered the last bit, but Crue's advanced hearing picked it up.

" _The fuck does he mean by that?"_ Crue thought, looking down at his attire. " _Is it the pocket watch? Nah. The shoes? I don't fucking know."_ He ignored the comment carried on, walking beside Ozpin. The two walked down a corridor, Crue just staring at the walls, only now realising just how _surreal_ it was to be within a show he had watched.

"Before we get to your new dorm, I feel an introduction is in order." Ozpin said, stopping in front of a door. Crue came to a halt, staring at the door. It looked no different from any other door they had passed, and yet, it seemed oddly familiar. Ozpin put his own scroll near the locking mechanism of the door. It buzzed and Ozpin opened the door.

Crue realised the reason why this door in particular felt familiar. Because behind that door was none other than team RWBY. The girls were all lounging around, but once they heard their door open, and saw their headmaster they sprung to attention.

"Professor!" Weiss cried. "Um, to what do we owe the pleasure?" She tried to be formal.

"Well, there is someone I would like you all to meet." Ozpin told them, stepping to the side, allowing them to see Crue.

"Hey guys." Crue waved awkwardly.

"But, sir, we already know Crue." Blake told him. Ozpin's eyes seemed to glimmer slightly.

"Oh is that so? Well then, that makes this much easier." Ozpin smiled. The smile didn't reassure Crue however, who had several things, mostly curses, running through his mind.

"Makes what easier?" Ruby asked hesitantly.

"Well, Mr. Cullen has decided to join our curriculum." He told them. They all held looks of happiness. "And, that means he needs a place to sleep. So, we have decided that this dorm would do just fine."

"WHAT!?" Every voice that didn't belong to the headmaster shouted. " _WHAT IS THIS MOTHERFUCKING HAREM ANIME PROTAGONIST BULLSHIT!?"_ Crue roared within his mind. " _GETTING STUCK WITH THE MAIN CAST, WHO ALL JUST SO HAPPEN TO BE FEMALE!"_

"Well you see," Ozpin began. "We took serious consideration into having him stay with team JNPR. However, Ms. Valkyrie still resents Mr. Cullen for injuring her partner." Crue felt his blood boil lightly.

" _I hate the fact you came up with a good fucking reason!"_ He complained within his mind. "And so, we decided that team RWBY, as the only team in their first year without a male member, should host him."

" _I see you're going for the Troll!Ozpin interpretation of him, asshole."_ Crue thought, glaring at the ceiling. "Now, I'm sure you all have plenty to discuss." Ozpin said, backing out of the room quickly. Before anyone could stop him or ask questions, the door slammed closed, leaving Crue alone with the four girls.

Crue slowly turned around to face them. Each of them held a different expression. Yang's face was filled with glee at the prospect of having someone knew to prank or tell terrible puns to. Blake tried to look indifferent, but was happy knowing another Faunus was in such close proximity. Weiss wore a look of utter disgust, but Crue hoped that was just because of the fact he was male, and not his newly acquired heritage.

Ruby… Crue couldn't quite place the look Ruby was wearing. It looked like a mixture of delight and apprehension. "So…" Crue began, unsure of how to break the tension. "Nice weather we're having." He tried. The others all gave him blank looks, causing him to smack his forehead.

"Yeah yeah that was dumb. I'm just letting you know now, I had no idea where he was taking me." Crue defended.

"Well, we already kind of know you, so it's not that bad." Ruby tried to comfort him.

Weiss looked like she was about to unleash hell upon Crue for daring to both be a male and be in the same dorm as them. "Before you say anything I have one question." He held up a single finger. Weiss put her tongue lashing on hold for the moment.

"What is it?" She asked hesitantly.

"Do you have a bathtub?" Crue asked. The question seemed so random and out of the blue, that they could not form a verbal response, instead just nodding slowly. "Then that's where I'll be sleeping."

This took them by surprise. "You're fine with sleeping in a bathtub?" Blake asked, accusation evident in her voice.

"Not really." Crue shrugged. "But I doubt any of you are gonna want to bunk with me." At that, Ruby began to tentatively raise her hand.

"RUBY!" Yang yelled, shocked at her sisters actions.

"I'm sorry!" Ruby responded, embarrassed. "I-I don't mean to be mean but, you're part dog, and you kinda remind me of Zwei. I'm sorry Blake!" She apologised to her feline friend, out of fear she was being racist. Crue couldn't help but laugh at the reasoning.

"Ruby," He began softly. "It's a fine reason," he then noticed Yang's threatening glare. "Buuut. I still think I'd be better on the ground."

Blake still eyed him suspiciously. He sighed, figuring she thought he was used to getting second hand treatment because he was a Faunus. "Look, it's between the tub, or the floor." They all showed looks of confusion. "Like on the floor, under a bed." He explained.

They all made 'oh' faces, and turned to one another in silent debate. "I think," Weiss began. "Under a bed would be better. If you sleep in a bathtub, one of us might forget you're there during a morning shower."

Crue's face made an odd shape. "Wow. I actually hadn't thought about that. Huh." He scratched his chin. "Alright, looks like I'm under a bed."

He noticed Weiss' look of disdain. "Look, Weiss." He said, getting her attention. "I'm not going to do anything weird. Alright? I can see the look on your face." Weiss blushed immediately having been caught out.

"It's not you personally." Weiss told him. "It's, boys in general. They all seem to be after my second name." She looked downwards, distraught.

"I didn't even know what your name was until yesterday." Crue told her. " _Wow that is the biggest fucking lie to ever come out of my mouth. Oh. Wait. They think I have amnesia."_ Weiss looked up at Crue, her eyes shining slightly. "I mean, even if I did, I wouldn't be trying to date you. Or, any of you for that matter." He looked to the rest of the girls. "No offense."

"None taken." Yang shrugged. Blake and Ruby showed similar signs of disinterest. "So, you wanna put your stuff away?"

Crue laughed. "Stuff implies I have things. I can count what I have on one hand. Minus the clothes." He began to empty out his pockets.

"All I have is my scroll, my wallet… Oh, I have a box of matches too. That's weird." He placed the three objects onto a table. "And my weapon." He held up his hurl with one hand. Ruby squealed and darted over to him, rose petals in her wake.

"What is it? How is it in battle? Does it shoot? Can it transform?" Ruby launched questions at him like a machine good. Crue couldn't help but laugh at her eagerness, recalling what a weaponsnut she was from RWBY itself.

"Right now it's a hurl. Or hurley" He told her, showing her the flat part of his weapon. He pushed the changing button near the handle. "It collapses into a sword." Ruby nodded, her silver eyes roaming over the weapon. Crue turned it back into a hurl and flipped it round, aiming the barrel at Ruby. "Bullets come from there. It's a single shot rifle. If you hold the trigger down however…" Crue trailed off, following his own instructions.

Everyone else took a step back from him. Then, everyone watched in wonder as a ball of dust began to form. When the ball was almost complete, Crue reached out to catch it. It landed in his hand, causing a searing pain that even his aura couldn't protect. "SON OF A-" His eyes fell on Ruby. "BISCUIT!" He held out his hurl, the dust ball landing on it.

"Right. Forgot that hurt." Crue muttered, blowing on his hand while lightly bouncing the ball up and down. Ruby watched the ball of dust go up and down.

"You can form dust into a physical thing? Weiss, can you do that?" She turned to find her partner rooting around in one of her drawers. Eventually she found what she was looking for, taking out a pure white glove.

She marched over to Crue, holding out the glove. "This is a dust proof glove we use in Dust Preparation Class. It should allow you to hold your, dust ball." The name apparently didn't sit well with Weiss.

With great difficulty, Crue managed to get the glove on one handed. He caught the ball of dust with his now gloved hand, marvelling at the difference. "Wow. It does work." He tossed the ball up and down in his own hand.

"What do you use the ball for?" Ruby asked immediately.

"I hit it. And it's called a sliotar" Crue responded bluntly. "I'd show you how far I can hit it, but we're kinda indoors so-" Crue was cut off by Ruby grabbing the collar of his shirt and dragging him out the door, rose petals trailing behind them.

…

"Where are we?" Crue asked, staring out over a vast drop.

"Oh, we're by the drop off zone." Ruby told him, smiling widely. "I figured this would be the best place for you to hit it and not, you know, hit anything." Crue smiled and decided to humour the red reaper.

"Alright." He agreed, causing Ruby to jump up and down in joy. He gave his hurl a few practice swings, before tossing the ball he had created back in the dorm up into the air. He brought his hurl back, and, 'ping'. The ball went soaring towards Vale, landing in the water with a large splash.

"Wow." Ruby said, astonished. She held starry eyes and looked strangely cartoony. Crue had to blink a few times to make sure they weren't playing tricks on him. When he was certain he had only imagined Ruby looking 2-D, he made another ball and hit it once more.

"That was really far!" Ruby cried. "I want to see if I can hit it!" She reached around her back and took out Crescent Rose, swinging it rapidly before planting it into the ground. Crue's jaw dropped at seeing what used to be a cartoon weapon, up close and looking terrifyingly real.

"Well. What are you waiting for?" Ruby asked. Crue closed his mouth to keep from catching flies and formed another ball.

"You ready?" He asked. Ruby nodded, peering into her sights. Crue smacked the ball skywards. Shortly afterward, Ruby had fired her sniper rifle, and hit the ball mid-air. "Nice shot!" Crue complimented, genuinely impressed at the skill.

"Oh, pshaww." Ruby blushed. "I just know how it works is all. I did make it after all."

"You made that?" Crue said, astonished. " _Oh wait. She said that in the show. It's just so fucking weird seeing it in real life. Or, fake, real, life. I don't know I'm tired."_

Ruby nodded proudly. "Yup. This is my sweet baby, Crescent Rose." She hugged her weapon, now in its collapsed form. "Does yours have a name?"

"Huh?" Crue asked.

"Your weapon. Does it have a name?" Ruby repeated. Crue stared down at his weapon, now in hurl form. He gripped it tightly, knowing exactly what name it should be.

"Yeah." He nodded. "I call it, Setanta." He raised the hurl up high. " _Ok. This is the only time I'll forgive you for the whole Cúchulainn thing."_ He said in his mind.

"Cool." Ruby said simply. For the next hour or so, they continued on practicing and making small talk, Ruby informing Crue about things he 'didn't know'.

"So let me get this straight." Crue said, hitting another dust ball. "Jaune saved Cardin, but he's still being a jerk."

"Yup. A Macheeta can't change its spots." Ruby responded, shooting the ball out of the sky.

"A what?" Crue asked.

"A Macheeta. It's a type of Grimm that lives mainly in Vacuo. It can go suuuper fast." She told him. "And its bone plate thingies are all in little dots on its fur."

" _So, making your own Grimm already huh?"_ "Sound's dangerous." Crue figured.

"Well yeah. So are all Grimm." Ruby contradicted his point.

"Oh yeah. Good point." With that, he prepared to hit another ball.

"Hey Crue." Ruby began. "Hm?" "How come you didn't want to sleep with me?" Crue missed his mark, his hurl making a wide arc over the ball.

Crue turned to Ruby to stare her right in the eye. Ruby stared back, unsure of what she said. " _Ah. The innocence of youth."_ Crue realised. "Ruby, it's not that I didn't want to sleep," Out of the corner of his eye, Crue noticed a bunch of blonde hair shake angrily behind a set of conveniently placed bushes. "next to you. It's just I think I would take up too much room." He lied.

He watched as the hair's anger began to die down. He leaned in to whisper to Ruby. "Besides, I don't think Yang would let me." Ruby didn't understand why, so she just shrugged and got ready to fire again.

They took two more shots, before Crue figured they should head back. Ruby agreed, having got enough info out of Crue about his weapon. As they walked back, they conveniently ran into the rest of team RWBY.

As they made their way back to the dorm, Yang had a question. "Hey, Crue?" She began, causing the boy to look at him. "How come you're cool with Blake?" Crue must have showed a look of confusion on his face, because Yang carried on with her question. "Well, it's just you're a dog Faunus, and she's a cat Faunus. I didn't think you'd get along with her."

Blake and Crue shared a glance. "I'm pretty sure you're being racist right now." Crue told her. Blake nodded in agreement. Yang got a light blush. "But, I'm not actually a dog Faunus." He told her, and to an extent the rest of team RWBY. "I'm a wolf Faunus."

The rest of the team nodded in understanding, but Ruby still had a query. "So does that mean you wouldn't like it if I did this?" She began scratching behind Crue's wolf ear. Crue's left foot began tapping up and down rapidly, and a low, soft whimpering sound escaped from his throat.

Crue instantly slapped both his hands up to his mouth, his cheeks a bright shade of red. "I didn't know I could do that." He said, mumbled by his hands. Ruby looked as embarrassed as Crue felt.

"Sorry. I didn't actually know what would happen. Blake wouldn't let me try it on her." She apologised.

"That's because a Faunus' animal parts are extremely sensitive." Blake told them as if this was common knowledge.

"But that means," Yang smiled evilly. "That if we pet you kitty cat, you'd purr." She took a step closer to Blake, who blushed and increased her pace.

"You have no proof of that." She argued, trying to get away from Yang.

"No. But I'll get some." She started chasing her partner down the hall, shouting cat related puns along the way.

" _If that's the Bumblby thing I asked for earlier, thanks."_ Crue thought watching them sprint away.

"Honestly. You'd think they'd learn to behave themselves." Weiss complained.

"Live and let live." Crue shrugged. Weiss glanced up at him, unsure as to what he meant. "You live your own life, and let others live theirs." He then frowned. "Why do I know what that means?"

" _This amnesia thing is actually pretty hard to pull off. I just have to pretend like I didn't know what I said."_ Crue thought to himself.

They eventually got back to the dorm room, finding Yang tied up in a corner and Blake in a huff, reading on her bed. Ruby sighed and went to untie Yang. While that was happening, Crue stared at the book in Blake's hand.

" _So, is it actually porn?"_ He asked himself.

"Um, Crue." Crue turned to see who was calling. He saw Weiss, looking at him, a slight frown on her features. "We're going to get changed into our bed clothes." She said slowly. Crue needed no more information, walking straight out of the room.

" _I told you. No harems."_ He repeated in his mind. Using his Faunus hearing, he picked up a conversation from behind the door.

"Huh. Guess he really doesn't want to date any of us." Yang said.

"I'm just glad that he's acting like a proper gentleman." Weiss agreed.

Crue shuddered at that. He was no gentleman. He just wasn't an asshole.

A short while later, the girls told them he could come in. He entered and stared at the two bunk beds, trying to decide which to sleep under. Eventually, he just settled for 'eenie meeny minie mo' and ended up under Weiss and Ruby's beds.

He didn't have any bed clothes, so he just took off his shoes and socks and everything on his torso. Yang let out a _wolf_ whistle when he took off his undershirt. Crue blushed and scuttled under the bed, calling out goodnight to everyone.

Once under the bed, Crue had a rather strange thought.

" _Wait. Why the fuck did I say I'd sleep under a bed?"_

* * *

 _Ok, this one was a bit shorter than usual. But hey, we've got some funny moments with Crue. The under the bed thing will probably come into play later. And just so you know, next chapter will be extra long to make up for this :) Hope you enjoy it._

 _-Friday_


	4. Lupus Avis

"Where is he?" Ruby wondered, staring under Weiss' bed. Everyone joined her, wondering where Crue had gone, or if he had even existed in the first place.

"We didn't share some freaky joint dream last night, did we?" Yang questioned, getting down on her hands and knees to peer under the bed.

"No. I'm fairly certain he was real." Weiss said, curious as to where he had gone.

"Found him." Blake informed them. The others turned to see Blake looking straight up. Following her gaze, they saw Crue stuck to the ceiling, sleeping soundly.

"How did he…" Ruby trailed off, staring at the shirtless boy sleeping on their ceiling. Yang, the tallest of the group, reached up to poke him.

Crue jerk awake, yawning loudly. "I'm up, I'm up, I'm up…" Crue realised that he was not on the floor. "-side down?"

"Yeah. How did you do that?" Yang asked. Crue didn't reply, staring at the ceiling, or in his case the ground.

"I can't look down." He muttered.

"Why not?" Ruby asked.

"Cartoon logic. Once I look down, I'll fall." Crue answered her. Ruby and Yang nodded in a 'fair enough' fashion. Blake and Weiss shared looks of confusion.

"You're not in a cartoon." Weiss told him. Crue's face showed a look of such scorn that Weiss wondered if he wasn't all that fond of cartoons.

"You're not going to fall." Blake told him. "Actually, it's possible that it could be your semblance." She deducted. Crue stared at her, which hurt both of their heads due to the fact the other was upside down.

"You think that being upside down is my semblance?" Crue asked her. Blake shook her head.

"Not that exactly. Perhaps it's sticking to walls. Or changing your centre of gravity. Your hair isn't falling down." She noted. Crue's hands felt his head, noticing that she was correct.

"Well, let's do an experiment." Crue took a step forward. When he didn't fall, he took another. Crue began walking around the ceiling, much to the entertainment of the others. "Now, let's see." Crue placed a foot onto the wall of the room.

When he didn't slide out of place, or fall to the ground, he placed both feet on the wall. "So, my semblance is being able to stick to walls. That's hardly useful in a fight." He complained.

"You're half right." Blake told him. "A semblance like that would be very useful in stealth missions. And if you're planning to ambush someone, you can easily hide above them and they wouldn't know."

Everyone just stared at Blake, somewhat apprehensive about her knowledge of such facts. Crue was staring at his feet, where it seemed his semblance was based. "It is not in human nature to look up." He muttered.

He could remember reading that quote somewhere before, but he wasn't sure where. "At any rate we should get to class." Weiss reminded them. They all nodded, and Crue quickly put the rest of his clothes on.

They exited the room and ran into JNPR. Pyrrha smiled at him, seeing that he had in fact decided to become a huntsman. "Hey Crue." Jaune called happily. "Nice to see you've joined us."

"Nice to be here." Crue responded. His eyes wandered to the rest of JNPR, and noticed Nora still glaring at him. He avoided her gaze, turning back to the direction he was walking in.

"So, uh, what class do we have?" Crue asked. He was never told the curriculum by Ozpin.

"First is Grimm Studies with Professor Port." Weiss informed them. There was a communal groan from the group, minus Pyrrha, whose smiled became just a little bit forced.

Crue was actually excited to go to the class. " _Time to learn some lore."_ He thought. " _Also. The fuck is with that semblance? Are you trying to make me Spiderman or some shit?"_ He asked 'The Author'. " _Like, yeah I guess it's cool. But what the hell has it got to do with me?"_

They walked onwards, Crue feeling oddly out of place as the only one not in uniform. " _At least Ruby's wearing her cloak."_ He thought, staring at the bright red article. They crossed the Beacon courtyard, passing by a few other students. Some of them in different uniforms, some of them in regular clothing.

Crue's newly acquired hearing picked up some of their conversations. "And so I told her where she could stick it." "Do you think I look fat in this?" "Where are the bathrooms?" "I think it's a growth." "No, I'm pretty sure there's fire dust can't melt steel beams." Crue was snickering quietly at the pieces he was taking out of context.

The group entered the actual academy, Crue just following the others as he hadn't the foggiest idea as to where he was going. " _You better not pull some 'I see we have a new student, let's have him fight against this dangerous beast' shit."_ Crue warned in his mind.

They approached the classroom, Crue noticing several other characters. They all looked like actual people, and not weird human shaped shadows. " _How many of these are your shitty OC's?"_ He asked.

A booming voice sounded from inside the class room, beckoning them to enter. Crue suddenly felt rather apprehensive about entering the room. Crue's eyes widened as he observer the room. It was similar to a lecture hall at a college, but on a much smaller scale. There were what appeared to be wardrobes at the back of the classroom, and hung up on the wall was a flag of Beacon's symbol.

A set of stairs led down into to an open space. On the wall of this lecture hall were several caricatures of Grimm and their limbs as well as weak points. Crue followed the members of team RWBY down to the first row, team JNPR taking one of the rows closer to the back.

As they sat, Crue gazed upon their lecturer. He was truly as round as the show made him seem. " _And Christ Almighty dude, shave the whiskers."_ The moustache completely covered his mouth, making his expression almost unreadable, were it not for how active his eyebrows seemed to be.

"Good morning students!" Professor Port announced. Crue brought his hand to his mouth, trying to stop himself from spitting out in laughter. " _I forgot he was voice by fucking Ryan! This is fucking beautiful!"_

Port didn't notice Crue's preventive hands, instead continuing on with his lecture. "Today we will be focusing on amphibious Grimm. Specifically those residing around the coast of Forever Fall." He informed them, his eyes briefly flickering to Crue. "And what better way to learn about a Grimm, then defeating it in combat!"

He pointed to a large grey cage that no one had noticed previously. It rattled ominously upon being addressed. " _Don't fucking tell me…"_ Crue thought, his mind instantly going to the worst and most cliché possibility.

"And who better to fight it, then the apparent new student that has joined the curriculum." His hand gestured to Crue, who shrunk slightly in his seat. " _YOU MOTHERFUCKER!"_ Crue exclaimed within his mind.

"I would be honoured sir." Crue said through gritted teeth. Port smiled behind that huge moustache. " _Fucking fanfic protagonist bullshit!"_

"Brilliant!" He exclaimed. "You shall be fighting against a dangerous Grimm, known as a **Crablante**." Several people in the room gasped, apparently the Grimm was well known. Crue blanked at the name. " _That's the fucker from One-Punch Man isn't it?"_

"Now, I suggest you get your weapon and battle clothing." Port suggested. Crue shook his head.

"Actually Professor, I think I'll be just fine." He smirked, already forming a plan within his mind.

"Oh ho?" Port chuckled. "Well then, please make your way to the front of the class, and prepare for a lesson."

Crue did as instructed, taking his place in front of the room. Team RWBY cheered him on, Blake waving a red flag with Crue's name on it. " _Where the fuck did she get that from?"_ He thought. " _You just gave her that for comedic effect didn't you?"_

"Alright!" Port announced, raising his weapon. "Let the match, begin!" He swung down on the lock that held the cage shut, the door falling open instantly, revealing the Grimm inside.

Crue could only stare at the crablike Grimm, making a rather strange comparison within his mind. " _It looks like an evil Kingler."_ He thought, analysing the beast. It had four spider like feet, each of them a bone white in colour. It had a single large claw that looked about as large as its own body. Crue could clearly see where the jaw on the Grimm was, the clashing colours of black and white making it obvious.

Intricate designs of red littered its claw, looking eerily close to eyes. It had four actual eyes, two of them as part of its head and the other two attached to stalks. The stalks ran under a bone like plate, Crue noticing the shadow, signifying that it was connected to its inside organs.

The Crablante let out an eerie gargling noise, scuttling forward rapidly out of its cage. Crue had not expected the speed it showed, stepping back at the last minute, only being grazed by its huge claw. The claw still held power behind it, causing Crue to go flying back.

He bounced once on the ground, before spinning mid-air and landing on his feet. " _Damn that was badass."_ He thought, sprinting towards the Grimm. " _Big claw is on its right side. Big claw is bad, right side is bad."_ Crue dashed to the left side, stamping down on one of the Grimm's legs.

The Grimm cried out in pain, swinging its little claw back. The claw didn't even cause Crue to flinch as he sped to the other side. "Well, now you have it crippled. How do you defeat it without a weapon?" Port announced.

Crue just smiled, loosening his tie. The Crablante scuttled towards him sideways, bigger claw aimed at him. Crue ran towards the Grimm, tie now held in his hand. The Grimm lunged forward with its claw, intent on skewering Crue. Crue didn't plan on being turned into a shishkebab any time soon, so he leaped over the claw, using it as a stepping stone.

He leapt forward off the claw, but not before wrapping the tie around one of the Crablante's eye stalks. Crue pushed off the Grimm's exoskeleton, pulling his tie with him. The Grimm let out a screech of pain as its internal organs were pulled out along with its eye, black ichor spurting from the hole left in its eye socket.

Crue stood up straight once the Grimm stopped moving. He cracked his neck and reapplied his tie, turning back to Port. "That, is how I shall defeat it." Several people within the class applauded him, Yang giving him a wolf whistle. " _Ok, maybe this protagonist bullshit isn't so bad."_

"EXCELLENT PERFORMANCE!" Port exclaimed. "Able to take on a Grimm without a weapon, truly a shining example of what a huntsman should be!" He gave Crue a rough pat on his back in congratulations, causing Crue's knees to buckle.

Crue went back to his seat, high fiving Ruby who he was sat closest to. Any excitement Crue had about learning more about the lore of the show from Port was driven from him instantly the moment Port began to talk.

" _I always thought that they were exaggerating about how boring he was."_ Crue thought. He somehow managed to keep consciousness, however he believed that to be due to the fact that he had heard Ryan talk for quite a while when watching his livestreams.

" _If we have Oobleck, I won't be able to see him as anyone other than Caboose."_ Crue realised. The class went on and Crue actually manage to learn something about the Grimm he just faced. Under normal circumstances, a hunter would cut off its smaller claw arm and wait for it to bleed out.

The class ended with Port giving them all homework, which was to write an essay on how to efficiently trap and kill a Crablante. Crue was excused from the homework due to such a good show. He felt awkward about being excused from homework on his first class, but he didn't voice his concern.

The moment they exited the room, RWBY broke into conversation and congratulation about how he handled the Grimm. "You were so cool!" Ruby complimented. "You were like," She made a motion of throwing a lasso. "And then you," She pulled on the 'lasso'. "And then psssh." She mimicked the noise that erupted from the creature as it died.

"What she is trying to say," Weiss translated. "Is that you did very well." The others all nodded in agreement.

"Thanks guys." Crue said gratefully. "I didn't really see anyway for my weapon to be useful, so I improvised."

"You're so lucky you got off homework." Ruby complained. "I didn't understand any of that."

"You were asleep for half of it." Blake commented, causing Ruby to blush.

"Not the point!" She exclaimed, holding up a finger.

Crue just laughed at the antics of the group. " _Man. Seeing these guys look like they're real is so weird."_ Crue thought.

They walked to the next class, which Weiss told him was history with Professor Oobleck. Crue almost said 'doctor', but then realised that they would ask him how he knew that. So, he shut up until they arrived at the next classroom.

The difference between Port's classroom and Oobleck's classroom was immediate. Papers were stuck against a large map of Remnant, different coloured strings on pins connecting some of them together. To the naked eye it didn't make a lick of sense, but to the eye of its creator…

"Greetings students!" Professor Oobleck announced to the class. RWBY spilt up within the class, Crue deciding he would stick by Blake, as she could probably understand the best whatever their teacher was saying.

"Now, today we will be learning about a significant turning point early on in the great war!" Oobleck got right into the lesson, speaking so rapidly that Crue had to clean out his ears lightly. He watched as Oobleck zoomed around the room, occasionally drinking from his coffee cup. "What is the name given to the battle that took place in Vale's very own Forever Fall?" He questioned.

Crue saw a pale hand rise in front of him. "The Battle of the Forever Fallen." Weiss answered. " _Well shit. That's a dark name."_ Crue thought.

"Correct Ms. Schnee." Oobleck congratulated. "The reason that the Faunus succeeded that battle in particular was due to a specific action they took. Can anyone tell me what that was?" He questioned the class.

Beside him, Blake raised her hand. "The Faunus hid in the trees." She answered.

"Precisely." Oobleck announced. "Does anyone know the reason why they did so?" He asked the class once more.

"Because they're a bunch of spineless animals." Crue heard a voice say. Turning his head, he was Cardin Winchester in the row across from him, sitting with his feet up on the table.

"Well aren't you a racist piece of shit." Crue thought. The gasp that ran through the class caused him to realise that he had said that out loud.

Cardin stood to his feet angrily. "What?! You got a problem!?" He dared.

"With you being a racist asshole? Yes. But, I also have the answer." Crue responded while turning to Oobleck. "It is not in human nature to look up."

"Although, I'm certain if a few humans didn't have their heads up their own asses, they might have actually seen them and stood a chance." Crue watched as Cardin took a step towards him, only for Oobleck to sit him back down.

"Mr. Winchester, kindly take your seat." Cardin begrudgingly sat back down. "And Mr. Cullen. Ignoring your use of inappropriate language, you are correct on all marks." Crue smirked as he raised a hand to Blake, who high fived it lightly.

The rest of the class quite literally sped by, Oobleck going over all of the key events in the battle, important figures and tactics and such. All the while he was talking, Crue could only think one thing.

" _Church, I'm your best friend. That's what I am to you ~ "_ When the bell eventually rang, Crue rose from his seat, smirking at Cardin as he passed him.

" _I am so glad you let me do that."_ Crue thought. He exited the class room, meeting up with team RWBY. "Hey guys." He waved to them.

"I'm so glad you stood up to Cardin." Ruby said happily.

"Yeah. Try to use a few less curses round my sis though next time." Yang joked. Crue nodded, scratching behind his head awkwardly.

"It's nice to see bigotry being taken down a notch." Weiss complimented. Crue smiled as they walked away from the class room.

"Wait. This is the way back to the dorms. Why're we going this way?" He asked.

Weiss turned around to answer him. "The next class we have is combat practice. We're going to get changed into our combat gear and grab our weapons." Weiss' eyes widened slightly, looking behind Crue. "Also, you may want to duck."

Crue did as instructed immediately, feeling a rush of air flow over his extra ears. He turned on his heel, seeing Cardin reeling from the missed punch. Crue took that opportunity to punch him in the gut seeing as he was already so low down.

Cardin doubled over as the fist made contact. Crue grabbed him by his school jacket and hurled him away from the group, not caring for the direction. They watched as Cardin bounced into the boy's toilets, and a splash was heard from within.

Crue dusted his hands together, turning back to the group. "Let's go before he gets his head out the toilet bowl." The others nodded, all sprinting away from the scene, Ruby using her semblance to get away as fast as possible.

Once they were safely within the confines of their own dorm, they all burst into laughter. "That was golden!" Yang said through tears of laughter.

Ruby said nothing, snickering so hard she couldn't form a comprehensive word. Even Weiss and Blake had both devolved into a set of giggles.

"Man, I hope the next time I see him his hair is wet." Crue laughed. They began grabbing their combat outfits, Crue stepping outside for the moment to allow them to change in privacy. As he waited, whistling a small tune, he noticed another team approaching.

"Hey guys." He waved at JNPR. They all returned greetings, minus Nora, who still glared at him.

"Hey Crue. You didn't happen to do anything to Cardin, did you?" Jaune asked uncertainly.

"Why?" Crue responded, an eyebrow raised.

"Because I saw him storm into his dorm and his hair was wet." They had not expected Crue to double over in laughter at the sentence.

"I may have," He said, wiping away a tear. "Helped him use the bathroom. So to say." Jaune looked at him oddly, about to say something but was distracted by the door to RWBY's dorm opening.

"Well hello there snow angel." Jaune flirted. Weiss didn't even look at him as she walked by, flicking her ponytail so it lightly batted his face. Crue listened to the interaction, observing Pyrrha's expression. He saw a frown flash across her features at Jaune's horrible flirting attempt.

" _Alright. Arkos is still sailing strong. Good to know."_ Crue thought, watching Pyrrha's face turn back to her generous smile.

"Come Jaune. Let's get ready for practice." Pyrrha suggested, lightly dragging a downtrodden Jaune into their dorm.

When the door closed, Crue retrieved his weapon from within the dorm and followed after Weiss. When he caught up with her, he slowed down to a trot. "So, that's what you thought I'd be like?" Crue asked.

Weiss huffed and nodded. "He's been at it since day one. Literally. Before we even made teams he was trying out moves on me. Like I was some common floosy." Crue blinked at the comparison.

"Are you sure he doesn't just, like you?" He asked. Weiss shook her head. "No. Boys always have, and always will be after the perks of my second name."

"Schnee?" Crue asked. Weiss nodded. "I might be wrong because of the amnesia, but I thought that wives were supposed to take their husbands names." Weiss sighed lightly.

"Well, that is the traditional way. But when times change so does tradition. I even hear that in some parts of the world, _harems_ , are socially acceptable." Crue's mind ground to a halt. " _MOTHERFUCKER! WHAT IS THE ONE THING I KEEP SAYING! NO DAMN HAREMS!"_

"That's where one person is dating a lot of other people right?" Crue asked.

"Yes!" Weiss exclaimed. "I cannot believe that people would allow something like that!" " _Me neither."_ Crue thought sarcastically, staring at the ceiling of the hallway.

Their conversation died off, the other three re-joining them shortly afterwards. They walked to the main building in Beacon, to the amphitheatre. Crue entered it and let out a low whistle. "I really want to shout echo." He murmured, staring at the huge open space.

"Tried it before." Ruby told him. "Goodwitch gave out to me." Crue chuckled at the idea of Ruby shouting out in the middle of a fight simply because she felt like it.

"Ah, Mr. Cullen." A voice called. They turned to see Goodwitch walking towards them, specifically Crue.

"Ms. Goodwitch." Crue greeted, turning to face her. Goodwitch's face scrunched up slightly.

" _Professor._ Please." She requested. Crue nodded, only having said that to wonder if she would correct him. "I've been instructed by Professor Ozpin to inform you that you will be doing most of the fighting for this particular lesson." She told him.

Crue raised an eyebrow at her, giving her an odd look. "Professor Ozpin requests that you fight as much as possible as to gauge your ability." She informed him. " _You are really good at creating rational excuses, you know that."_ Crue thought.

"Of course. Just let me know who I'll be fighting." He smiled, climbing up a set of stairs to the seating area. He joined RWBY, with JNPR sat behind him. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Cardin glaring at him, his hair now unfortunately dry.

"Now," Goodwitch called, every eye, minus Cardin's, focusing on her. "As per the usual opening of class, I shall pick one student, and one other student may volunteer." Crue realised exactly what was going to happen.

"Mr. Cullen." She said calmly. "If you would kindly step into the arena." Crue sighed, knowing exactly who was going to volunteer. "And the volu-" She had barely gotten the words out of her mouth when Cardin stood up roughly.

"I volunteer!" He announced, not giving the professor room to deny as he descended the steps, shoving Crue out of the way and telling him: "You're mincemeat, freak."

The others began to protest, but stopped due to Crue holding up a hand. Crue wore an unnerving smile as he cracked his knuckles menacingly, glaring at Cardin's back. "Oh, it's gonna be fun on the bun." He said ominously, entering the arena.

The members of RWBY and JNPR looked at each other apprehensively. "I think, we may need a medic ready for Cardin." Ren stated calmly. The others, while wanting to see Cardin need a medic, were still somewhat fearful as to what exactly Crue would do.

The two combatants stood at either side of the arena, Goodwitch waiting off to the side. Their faces popped up on a screen, a generic male profile for Crue as he hadn't had his student picture taken yet. Cardin gripped his mace tightly, glaring at Crue fiercely.

Crue just smirked at the bully, already planning his abject humiliation. " _You've got me smirking like an anime protagonist who knows he has the upper hand. And oh how true that is."_ The countdown timer began to sound out, counting down. As it neared the beginning of the match, Crue put his plan into action. "Well, you must have had a nice drink right?"

Cardin's eyes narrowed as the buzzer sounded and he ran forward. He swung widely with his mace, Crue easily sidestepping it, not even bothering to take out his weapon. "You know up close I've got to say, you've got one of the most punchable faces I've ever seen." Cardin roared as he swung at Crue.

Crue ducked under the swing with ease, standing straight back up once it had passed and socking Cardin in the face. "See what I mean. That was too easy." Cardin reeled back, grabbing at his nose. He glared at Crue and ran forward, mace held high in his right hand. Crue sprinted to his left, kicking at his exposed legs.

Cardin stumbled forward and fell flat on his face, his aura bar lowering. He got back up immediately, spinning around and glaring at Crue. As he made his way to Crue, Crue jumped high, causing Cardin to follow his movements. As Cardin was running, his foot kicked something, causing an explosion. Cardin was sent flying backwards onto his back not noticing the trap Crue had laid.

Crue had formed a dust ball while Cardin was face down on the floor, leaving it behind him when he jumped so as to not be caught in the blast. Cardin's bar was now in the orange, and Crue's was still at 100%. Cardin got up, rage on his face.

Crue decided this would be the best time to implement the final blow. "Nice mace. You compensating for something?" Cardin's eyes shrunk to pinpricks as he roared and hurled his mace towards Crue.

Crue effortlessly leaned to the right, just enough so that the mace would go soaring past him. Just before it did however, Crue reached out and grabbed its handle. The mace stopped flying, now in Crue's possession.

Crue smirked at Cardin, who wore a look of disbelief. "I'm guessing you want this back huh?" He asked rhetorically. Cardin said nothing, instead his face turned into a rage filled grimace. "Well I won't know if you want it back if you don't say anything."

"Maybe I'll keep it then." Crue considered, weighing the mace. Cardin's expression hardened. "Yeah. I'm sure anyone else could find better use of it than you." Cardin's hands clenched tightly. "Maybe the new owner wouldn't end up face first in a toilet bowl."

"GIVE IT BACK!" Cardin snapped. The moment he began forming the words, Crue had tossed the mace up in the air.

"You want it back?" Crue asked, bringing his hurl back over his shoulder. Cardin's mace began falling back down to earth, round spikey end first. "You can have it!" Crue swung his hurl, connecting it with Cardin's mace and sending it flying towards him.

The mace smacked Cardin right in the face, sending him sprawling onto the ground, his aura close to depleted. A buzzer sounded, indicating the match had been won. Crue cracked his neck in happiness. " _I know half of that shit was probably you, but I truly appreciate you letting me punch that fucker in the face. Now, next time you leave his balls open, deal?"_

"The winner is Crue Cullen." Goodwitch announced. No one needed her to say what was clearly obvious, with Cardin lying on the ground three meters away from Crue, who was wearing a smug smile. "Mr. Cullen, if you would kindly return to your seat. And someone please call the nurse."

Crue marched up the stairs back to the seating area proudly. He sat down in his previous spot and let out a sigh. "Well that was satisfying." He said, leaning back in the seat.

"That was brutal." Jaune commented. The others all nodded in agreement. "And dirty."

Crue turned around to look at Jaune. "I don't fight dirty." He told them, each of them wearing looks of disbelief. "The only reason I fought like that was because he's an ass-" His eyes fell on Ruby, recalling Yang's request of less swearing. "Butt."

Ruby snickered at the insult. "Hehe. Assbutt." Yang glared at Crue, who threw up his hands in defence.

"If I fight anyone else, provided they're not a racist jerk, I'll fight normally." Crue told them all. They all frowned, but eventually agreed with him. Goodwitch randomised the next match, the combatants turning out to be Jaune and Ruby.

"Alright!" Ruby cheered, running down the steps to the arena. Jaune gave a weak 'yay', and followed after her.

"He's dead." Weiss stated. Crue, Blake and Yang all nodded in agreement. The rest of JNPR gave them annoyed looks.

"Why do you think that Weiss?" Pyrrha asked, but Crue could sense the malice behind her voice.

"Because he is unskilled and a bumbling mess." Weiss told her. Crue frowned at that. He saw Pyrrha clench her fist tightly.

"That's not the reason." Crue stated. Everyone turned to him. "I mean, yeah, he's gonna lose. Bad. But it's not to do with his skill level." The buzzer sounded, signalling the start of the two leaders match. "It's not their skill, but their style."

"Ruby's weapon is a scythe and a sniper rifle. Jaune's is a sword and a shield. The two don't meet equally. Ruby has something that Jaune sorely lacks." Everyone leaned forward slightly, wanting to know his weakness. "Reach."

Everyone turned to the match, seeing just how true Crue's words were. Ruby was fighting Jaune from a distance, firing at him. Jaune had his shield raised and was running towards her. The moment he got close however, she transformed her weapon and swung at him with the scythe.

"The two are too different. I'm sure if you switched weapons Jaune would be giving Ruby a hard time." The match ended with Ruby's aura still in the green, and Jaune's in the red.

"The winner is Ruby Rose." Her teammates cheered her on, and JNPR gave a polite clap. Crue joined in on the cheering.

"The next battle shall be between…" Glynda activated the randomiser. "Weiss Schnee, and, Crue Cullen."

The two combatants glanced at each other, Weiss showing a look of apprehension. "Don't worry. You're not a bigot so I'll just fight normally." This seemed to calm Weiss down, the two of them entering the arena.

They took opposite ends of the arena, Crue readying his weapon and Weiss taking out Myrtenaster from its holster. The buzzer sounded out, and Crue dashed forward, changing Setanta into its sword form.

Weiss brought up Myrtenaster to block, the two weapons colliding and causing sparks. They both leaped back, Weiss spinning her dust chamber. A glyph formed on the ground beneath Crue, spinning rapidly. Crue jumped skyward, a large shard of ice shooting out from the glyph.

Crue landed on the ice, sticking to it by using his semblance. " _I hope you tell me how the fuck to activate it, cause right now I'm relying on you."_ Crue thought, running up the spire of ice and transforming his weapon. Once he was at the top, he took aim at Weiss and fired the rifle.

A few shots hit Weiss, depleting her aura. She did however manage to make a glyph in front of her, protecting her from any more shots. Crue leaped from the ice, raising his hurl back over his head. He brought it down on her black glyph that she was using to protect herself, a strange ringing noise emanating from the connection.

Weiss erased the glyph after Crue had made contact, causing him to fall, no longer having a stable surface to stand on. Weiss took the opportunity to stab him with her rapier. Crue didn't have time to block, and was sent flying back, bouncing on the ground.

He got up, an annoyed look on his face. " _HEY! I THOUGHT YOU WERE TRYING TO MAKE ME SOME OP OC. WHAT THE HELL MAN?"_ Crue sped towards Weiss, Setanta in its hurl form. He leaped and brought his hurl back, intending on striking Weiss with it. What he had not accounted for, was Weiss' ability to duck.

Weiss dipped underneath the swing, but the momentum was so great that Crue followed through with the action. Crue's entire body twisted due to the force of the swing. His knees hit the ground and his spine made several disturbing popping noises.

Everyone in the room flinched at the sound that had just came from Crue's back. Even Weiss was hesitant to attack him. "Didn't know those could crack." Crue said aloud, standing back to his feet. " _That was a fucking play by play of the time Gavin tried the Happy Gilmore! That felt fucking horrifying you shithead!"_

He smacked his hurl on the ground, creating a small shockwave that sent Weiss back a bit, dodging it. "Sorry. Just needed some recuperating room." He told her, gripping his hurl in both hands. Weiss looked annoyed at the action, but said nothing. Instead, she formed a white glyph behind her so as to launch herself towards Crue.

He began forming a dust ball as Weiss sped toward him. Once the ball was formed, he hit it skyward and blocked Weiss' attack. They began clashing swords, Crue having to parry at awkward angles to keep himself from being hit.

Crue finally managed to knock Weiss a good distance away, when the ball started to come back down. Crue reeled his hurl back, and swung. It connected with the ball, sending it right towards Weiss.

Weiss instantly created a glyph to act as a barrier between her and the ball, but it was not as effective as she would have hoped. The ball exploded on contact with the glyph, the shockwave overpowering Weiss and throwing her back, causing her to land roughly on her back.

A buzzer sounded, indicating the match was over. Both combatants looked to the scoreboard, seeing Crue's aura reserves in the yellow, and Weiss in the red. Weiss huffed and laid back down, clearly annoyed at the loss. She looked up at the sound of footsteps, seeing Crue approaching her.

He held out a hand to her, smiling. "Good match." He told her.

Weiss smiled back at Crue. "The same to you." She grabbed his hand, standing up and dusting off her dress. " _Combat skirt."_ Crue corrected himself. They began making their way to the seating area, RWBY and JNPR giving them applause.

"Your morals confuse me." Ren stated, staring at Crue. Crue stared back, unsure of what he meant. "You say you fought Cardin the way you did because of his bigotry and how he treats Faunus. And yet you fought Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company on equal terms."

Weiss got a light blush at that, feeling ashamed at her family's disgraceful behaviour. "Weiss isn't a bigot." Crue told him. "Her father may be, but she's not." Crue smiled at Weiss, who returned it gratefully.

The randomisation for the match started again. The fighters were going to be Blake and Ren. The two ninjas got up silently, nodding to each other as they descended into the arena. "So Crue." Yang began, watching as the two combatants took their place. "Any mystical wisdom as to these two fighting?"

The rest of the group turned to Crue, who watched the match intensely. They began fighting, Ren sliding out his weapons from under his sleeves and firing at Blake. "Ren has dual submachine guns." He watched as Blake dodged the fire, spinning to the side and sending Gambol Shroud towards Ren, holding onto its ribbon.

"Blake has what's basically a chain sickle." He legitimately thought about how the two would match up, and who would come up on top. "Neither are suited for long distances, but medium distance would be their best place to fight."

They stopped firing, instead moving closer, using the sharp edges of their weapons. "Close up works too. What are their semblances?" He turned to the group.

"Blake can make shadow clones, letting her dodge attacks." Weiss informed him.

"Renny doesn't like using his semblance in fights." Nora said, watching the battle. Crue raised an eyebrow at this.

" _That means you don't know what it is either do you? Or you can't create a reasonable sounding one."_ Crue returned his gaze to the fight. "Well, I guess that means the most likely to win would be Blake." Crue scratched the back of his head, hands brushing against his extra ears. "All in all, they seem to be pretty evenly matched." This was true, as they were both currently in the orange, and still going strong.

"Yeah. They're both ninjas." Ruby said, making chopping motions with her arms. "So that means they're on equal footing." She swung her legs lightly, saying this.

A short while later, the match had finished with Blake as the victor, Ren completely exhausted. "Huh. I was right." Crue thought out loud. After that match was one between Nora and a random person from the class.

"Who's that guy?" Crue asked. The others all seemed to sigh.

"Blood Saber." Yang informed him. "He's the leader of team BLDD. I swear all they ever do is brood about how much they hate life. They've all got such edgy weapons." Yang's point was proven when Blood unsheathe a katana that was as black as the night sky.

"We fight once again/ oh Valkyrie of ginger/ I shall defeat you." Blood brought his hand in front of his eye as he pointed his katana at Nora.

"Was that a haiku?" Crue asked in disbelief. The others all grimly nodded. " _Edgy OC that speaks in haiku. Yep. I'm definitely in some shitty fanfiction."_ The match started and Blood was too busy monologing to see Nora leaping towards him, hammer swung over her back.

He was defeated in a single blow, the match ending instantly. "I don't know what I expected." Crue said. " _Or are you just trying to go for '2 edgy 4 me' humour."_ He watched as Nora merrily skipped away from her unconscious adversary.

"I haven't seen anyone from that team win a single match." Weiss noted. "They all seem too concerned with telling their opponent exactly what they're about to do. And they seem to think that as long as their teammates shout 'you can do it' they're invincible"

" _So basically you're giving them all the tropes of a shounen anime, and completely fucking with them. Nice."_ He watched as Blood was dragged off by people in equally dark clothes and emo hairstyles.

"Next up." Glynda began as the randomisation process began again. "Crue Cullen and, Yang Xiao Long." Crue's blood ran cold as he turned to Yang, who was grinning widely at him.

"Alright! Let's do this thing!" She stood up, clapping Crue on the back as she passed. Crue stood up shakily, following her. " _Come on man! You're having me fight Yang! The fucking unbeatable Yang!? Is this for what I said earlier about the shitty OC's earlier? Come on! It's Yang! I don't want to fucking die!"_

"Are the combatants ready?" Goodwitch asked. They both nodded, Yang cocking her gauntlets in preparation. Crue raised his hurl up, preparing for the worst. The match started with Yang firing off a blast right towards Crue.

Crue swung his hurl, deflecting the projectile back to Yang. Yang ducked under it, making her way towards Crue. Crue quickly flipped his weapon around, firing at Yang. A few managed to hit her, but it did not stop her approach.

Crue had to hold his weapon with both hands in defence to keep Yang from landing a punch on him. Her fist connected with the cool metal of his hurl. " _I know I don't want to die! But you're not gonna have me win are you!"_ Yang fired a shot after connecting, causing Crue to flinch back.

" _I will accept a tie in her favour. That's about as close I want to get to beating her!"_ Crue thought as he stepped bag and swung at Yang. It connected with Yang, her face following the direction of the swing. She stood her ground however, and punched Crue in his cheek.

Crue reeled back in pain, but managed to keep a single foot on the ground. He spun on his heel, turning and punching Yang as hard as he could, his hurl held in his opposite hand. Yang went skidding back due to the punch. She looked up and glared at Crue, her eyes flaming red, her hand resting on her breast.

Crue realised what just happened, and felt his jaw drop open. " _I JUST PUNCHED YANG XIAO LONG IN THE FUCKING TIT! THERE IS NO WAY I'M WALKING OUT OF THIS ALIVE!"_ He gulped, looking at the enraged face Yang was making. "Ms. Goodwitch, you wouldn't happen to know anyone who rights a good will would you?"

"Apologies, but no." She replied.

"Ah, balls." Yang dashed towards Crue, her fists pulled back and ready to strike. Crue could see his life flashing before his eyes as he stared into Yang's scarlet orbs. He brought his hurl up to block, and Yang used one of her fists to smack it.

Her other fist however, went down low. Crue's eyes widened as he realised what was about to happen. Every male in the room, as well as some of the girls cringed and crossed their legs in horror. The pain was indescribable to Crue, and yet his first thought was of Cassie Cage's fatality from Mortal Kombat X.

"I needed those." Crue whimpered out, just before he was sent skyrocketing from the added shotgun blast to his nether regions. Crue hit the ceiling with a 'thud'. He stayed there using his semblance, and his hands instantly went to cradle his injury.

Crue took in a large breath, and shouted at the top of his lungs. Crue went on the longest, loudest, and most vulgar rant anyone had ever heard. It was such a spectacular that it would bring a blush to even the manliest of sailors.

Yang was in such a state of rage she didn't even care for his cursing. "GET BACK DOWN HERE AND FIGHT!" She shouted up to Crue. Crue glared down at her, eyes matching hers in terms of anger.

"NO! HOW ABOUT YOU COME UP HERE AND FIGHT ME! AND STOP BEING SO DAMN Y-ANGRY!" He yelled back. Yang's eye twitched. Nobody uses puns with her name in them against her. Nobody.

Yang yelled as she jumped and fired downward, using the force from the blast to shoot up to Crue. Crue dropped from the ceiling, arm stretched downwards as he had lost Setanta when he hit the ceiling.

The two roared as their fists came into contact with the others face. They came to a stop for a brief moment, before they both fell towards the ground. They landed with a crash, throwing up dust and dirt.

"The winner is Yang Xiao Long, by a hair." The two combatants both sighed in relief at that.

" _Ok, thank you for not making me win, but also FUCK YOU!"_ Crue groaned as he sat up, noticing Goodwitch exiting the room. As he stood up, he was verbally assaulted by Yang.

"THAT WAS DIRTY!" She roared at him, jabbing a finger at him while cradling her left breast.

Crue's eyes turned into a glare. "I WAS DIRTY!? YOU PUNCHED ME RIGHT IN THE GODDAMN BABYMAKERS!" He snarled.

They both raised fists, prepared to fight each other once more. Their fists were caught in a strange purple glow, Crue noticing Goodwitch returning with something in hand. "I thought you may need this." She said, holding the object out to Crue.

Crue took it, realising it was an ice-pack. He made sure to stare at Yang, as he stretched his jeans open, and dropped the pack in. With that, he stalked off back to the seating area, wincing every second step.

They both sat down in their seats at the same time, arms crossed and frowns on their faces. "Not, a word." They said in unison. Everyone wisely decided to say nothing.

"I am not going back down there." Crue stated. " _That means you, jackass. Why would you hurt a place God only intended to treat nicely."_ His lower region twinged in pain. "Please tell me this is almost over."

"There should only be a few matches left." Weiss reassured him. "Hopefully none of them involving you." Crue nodded in agreement.

"I hope so. What's after that?" He asked.

"Lunch."


	5. Change Begins

" _Please let this pass without incident."_ Crue begged as he sat down at the lunch table. The cafeteria was bustling with activity, people talking about what had transpired during the day and interesting gossip.

Crue was seated at the same table as RWBY and JNPR, and was desperately hoping nothing bad would happen. " _Ok, I know it's not the start of Volume 2 cause Ruby's here."_ His eyes flickered to the young reaper, who was munching on a cookie.

" _Where did she get that?"_ He thought as he looked down at his own meal. " _And why do I have so much meat?"_ Crue forked a small piece of meat and chomped down on it. His eyes widened at the sudden flavour.

" _Is this because I'm part Wolf now? You racist fucker."_ He then watched as Blake shoved a tuna sandwich down her gullet. " _Never mind. Point proven."_ He continued with his meal, eyes roaming over the cafeteria, trying to spot people he recognised.

He saw team BLDD sitting in a corner, a dark cloud hovering above them, eating food that was completely black in colour. " _2 edgy 4 me. That's what you're going for right?"_ Crue returned to his search, noticing a pair of bunny ears above the crowd.

His heart rate suddenly picked up as he stared at the ears. His mouth ran dry and he had to drink some of his water. " _What the fuck was that?"_ He pondered, staring at his food. " _I can't tell if you're pulling the race thing again with wolves and rabbits, but I'm not eating her."_ He paused at that thought. " _In_ _ **either**_ _way."_

He continued eating his meal, occasionally talking with the others. Nora was rambling about a dream she had had, with Ren correcting her. Crue slowly poked at his food, wondering exactly how 'The Author' would mess this up.

" _Don't have Cardin come in and be a dick to Velvet, cause he won't survive it. You know that."_ Crue's eyes scanned the crowd, looking for one asshole in particular. When he didn't see the offending auburn hair, he turned back to the group.

"What do we have after this?" Crue asked the group.

Weiss turned to him. "After this we have Dust Preparation with Professor Peach." Crue blanked at the name. "She doesn't seem to be around often though." She added as an afterthought.

" _Seriously."_ Crue nodded. " _You don't know what to say she looks like do you?"_ He thought with a smirk, eating his food. He felt a piece of meat lodge itself in his throat, causing him to cough violently. After a few thumps of his chest, and reassuring everyone else he was ok, he managed to swallow it.

" _You tried to kill me because I made a joke. Fucking hell man."_ He coughed once more. "Went down wrong." He excused, drinking some of his water.

The rest of the meal went down without any near death experiences for anyone. They got up from the table, leaving their trays in a collecting bin. Crue followed them to a classroom that had a note on it.

"Students, your experiment today is to create lightning dust, instructions and ingredients can be found on the desks. Please split into groups of two." Pyrrha read off the note. Crue was instantly left on his own, the two teams splitting into their partner groups.

"Sorry Crue." Ruby apologised. "I'm sure you'll find someone to pair up with though." She smiled, taking a small table to herself and Weiss. Crue noticed how dissimilar this classroom was to the others. The other class's he had been to had all been in rooms similar to lecture halls, whereas this one looked like a science classroom, with tables scattered around the room.

Crue noticed a single empty table, realising that it must be for him. " _So, who pray tell are you going to pair me up with."_ He sat down at the table, looking at the equipment set out before him. There were several measuring jugs, a set of tweezers, a Bunsen burner and a large amount of dust in different vials.

"I haven't a clue what the hell any of this is." Crue muttered, prodding one of the dust vials.

"Um, excuse me." He heard a soft voice. It was so quiet he probably wouldn't have picked it up if it weren't for his heightened sense of hearing. Crue turned around, seeing someone who sent his heart racing, and not in a good way.

"Everywhere else is full. Could I join you?" Velvet asked, rubbing her hands together awkwardly.

"Of course." Crue nodded, gesturing to the empty seat beside him. Velvet smiled gratefully, taking the seat.

"My names Velvet." She told him, a light smile on her face.

"I'm Crue. It's nice to meet another Faunus." Crue smiled at her, eyes flicking to her rabbit ears, which twitched lightly upon being mentioned.

Velvet nodded in agreement. "It is. Even if our species wouldn't particularly get along." She whispered.

Crue tilted his head in confusion. "What do you mean?" He asked. Velvet gained a confused look, staring at Crue strangely. Something seemed to click in his head. "Oh, I should probably mention I have amnesia." He rubbed the back of his head awkwardly.

"Oh, then that's understandable." Velvet pardoned his confusion. "We, that is, Faunus, haven't always been on the best of terms with each other. In fact, the only time we've been able to cooperate properly was when we had to fight against humans."

"Herbivores and Carnivores have always had their differences. And, this isn't any offense to you by the way, carnivorous Faunus have always been a bit more, vicious." Velvet chose her words carefully, eyes on Crue's heritage. "There have even been some cases where a carnivorous Faunus went feral, and there were even some cases of cannibalism."

Crue blanked at that, a look of horror on his face. "Jesus." He muttered. "I can't believe that." He turned away from Velvet, staring at the equipment. "I didn't know anything like that could even happen."

" _That would explain why my hearts trying to break out of my chest."_ Crue thought sarcastically, feeling his heart hammering against his rib cage. He turned back to Velvet. "As weird as this sounds I feel like I need to say it."

"I'm not going to eat you." As soon as he said those words, his heart rate returned to normal. Velvet smiled at him gently.

"I know that. You seem like a civilised person." She turned to the equipment. "We should probably get started. Although, seeing as you have amnesia, I'm guessing you don't know what to do." Crue nodded in agreement.

"Don't worry. I'll walk you through all the important things." Velvet said sweetly, hands grabbing a few key components.

Crue watched and listened with interest as she explained how mixing types of dust would create other kinds. She showed Crue the measurements required to mix dust together without it becoming volatile. Crue helped out by measuring and pouring when Velvet instructed him to.

All the while, Velvet was giving him titbits of information about herself. "Wait, so if you're a second year why are in a first year class?" He noticed how Velvet's ears drooped at that question. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to." He immediately informed her.

Velvet threw him a grateful smile, but shook her head. "No, it's fine. It was a legitimate question." Crue noticed her Australian accent came out of hiding. "I am a brilliant fighter. But, I was so focused on training my body, I didn't really have any time to train my mind. So, I failed a few of my end of term exams."

"Professor Ozpin was very kind though. He said I only needed to retake the classes I failed, and that I could still be a part of my team." She smiled gently. "So, the only classes I need to take are this, History, and Home Economics." Crue blinked at the last one.

"We have Home Ec?" He asked. Velvet nodded. "Huh. I haven't had that class yet. I only joined Beacon yesterday."

"Well that's fine. We don't have it today anyway. This is our last class of the day actually." She poured a measuring of dust into a container, electing a small reaction from the mixture.

"We only need one more thing now." Velvet told Crue, grabbing a mixture they had made previously. "Would you like to do the honours?" She held the mixture of Fire and Wind dust to Crue. Crue shook his head and held up his hands defensively.

"I don't trust myself enough to handle it." He told her. "Besides, you've done most of the work. You should do it." He smiled at Velvet, who nodded with a light blush. She carefully combined the two mixtures, causing them to glow brightly.

When the glow faded, the dust was coloured a light blue. "Did it work?" Crue asked, touching the glass container. Crue felt a shiver as static electricity coursed through him. He heard Velvet giggling, and turned to see what was so funny.

"Your, your hair." She said through giggles. Crue's free hand instantly went to his head, feeling his hair. He could feel them all standing on end and waving slightly. Crue realised that the dust container acted similar to how a plasma ball would.

Crue smiled and grasped Velvet's hand. Velvet let out an 'eep' as Crue pressed her finger against the container. Her fair stood on end, causing her to look very similar to the bride of Frankenstein, if she had brown hair. Because of how long Velvet's hair was, it completely hid her rabbit ears. Velvet turned to Crue, and began laughing.

The two of them shared a good laugh before removing their fingers from the newly made dust. Velvet's hair fell over her face, reminding Crue of Cousin It. He snickered as Velvet's face appeared from behind her hair. She blew a few loose strands away and styled her hair back to normal.

"We can leave this in now." Velvet told Crue, slipping on the dust proof gloves. She gripped the container and placed a rubber lid on the top, putting a label on the glass. Velvet signed her own name, and Crue followed suit. She stood up and dropped the vial off on the teacher's desk. Or rather where the teacher should be.

Luckily, Crue noticed something bad about to happen just before it did. He had finally found that particular shade of auburn that pissed him off, and noticed it was a row or two in front of him. He noticed, but Velvet didn't, Cardin's foot sticking out slightly from behind his desk. Velvet clipped the foot, stumbling forward.

Within seconds, Crue had gotten up from his own seat, arms out to catch Velvet. Vevlet landed in his arms, staring up at her saviour. "Looks like you fell for me." Crue smirked. Velvet's face instantly turned red, and it didn't help that Yang gave a loud whistle at the comment.

Crue helped Velvet back to her feet, shooting a glare at Cardin, who turned away, angry that his plan had failed. They sat back in their seat, Velvet still wearing a blush and Crue looking forward normally. " _I can't tell if you're trying to make this work._ _But I will give props where props are due. That was smooth as fuck."_

"I probably made you feel really awkward huh." Crue said, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. "I uh, I didn't really know what else to say."

Velvet looked up to Crue, blushing lightly. "It's ok. It was just a spur of the moment thing right?" Crue nodded. "Then it's ok. Thank you, though. For catching me." Crue just nodded again, a smile on his face.

"Don't worry about it. Us Faunus have to look out for each other." They fell into a comfortable silence. Soon afterwards, the bell rang, prompting everyone to gather their things and exit the class room. "See you round Velvet." Crue waved as he headed in the direction of the first year dorms.

Velvet waved goodbye, heading in the opposite direction of Crue. Crue watched as she walked away, turning around when she rounded a corner. He came face to face with bright lilac eyes, causing him to jump in the air in shock.

"Oh, Yang. It's just you." He then recalled what had transpired earlier and crossed his legs. "It's you." Yang rolled her eyes.

"I'm not trophy hunting." She told him, arms crossed under her breasts. "But, it looks like you were." She winked, eyes staring at the point where Velvet had turned the corner. Crue sighed, and was about to explain but another voice did it for him.

"Yang. Leave him be." Weiss said, grabbing the blonde by the ear. "He was simply being polite and stopping her from falling."

Crue nodded in agreement. "Thank you." Weiss smiled appreciatively. "And besides, what I said was a spur of the moment thing."

"So you don't find her attractive?" Yang pushed.

"I don't know what I find attractive." Crue responded. " _Alright, amnesia, time to help out."_ "I can't remember who or what I like. I could be gay for all I know." He threw his hands up in exaggeration.

"That is a serious case of amnesia if you can't remember what you find attractive." Blake said, eyes slightly wide.

"Well, what do you find attractive?" Crue questioned, trying to shake the subject.

Blake's cheeks instantly turned red. "Whoever the main character of her latest smut book is." Yang grinned, answering Crue's question. Blake's blush intensified as she whacked Yang's arm.

"Yang! It's not smut!" She defended. " _So it IS porn."_ Crue thought.

"Oh right, right." Yang waved her hands. "It's an, 'adult romance novel'." Yang said through air quotes.

Crue could see the impending fight, and apparently so could everyone else. "HEY LET'S GO TO VALE!" Ruby shouted, stopping the fight instantly.

"Vale?" Crue asked.

"It's the city where Beacon is situated." Weiss informed him. Crue nodded. " _You better let me find out some excuse as to why I already know this."_ He glared at the ceiling.

"Are there stores and stuff?" Crue asked. They all nodded. "Cool. Cause I need to get some stuff." Crue received strange glances.

"Like what?" Yang asked.

"I don't know. A toothbrush?" He offered. They all showed looks similar to that of a goldfish, upon realising what 'stuff' he was talking about. "Pyjamas, things to take notes with. That kind of stuff."

"Well then, let's get going!" Yang exclaimed, grabbing Crue around the neck and dragging him with her, his head uncomfortably close to her breasts. " _MAKE HER LET ME GO RIGHT NOW! I SWEAR TO FUCK GET ME AWAY FROM HER TITS!"_

Yang released Crue, who gratefully sucked in air. " _No one, from the main cast. Not RWBY, not JNPR. Hell! Not even CFVY. I will not date any of the protagonists here."_ Crue matched the others pace as they approached a bullhead.

"I hope you're not like Vomit Boy." Yang said as they boarded the flying ship. Crue tilted his head at Yang, feigning confusion.

"Yang." Ruby whispered. "He doesn't know why you call Jaune that."

Yang's eyes widened slightly. "Oh right. The whole 'only showing up now' thing." She waved a hand. "You see, on our trip into Beacon, Jaune .A.K.A. Vomit Boy, threw up. On my shoes." Crue winced at the description.

"Yes, he also induces the feeling of vomiting." Weiss muttered, checking her nails. The others frowned at that. They understood Weiss' opinion of Jaune, but that didn't mean they had to agree with it.

"Come on Weiss. He's not that bad." Ruby defended.

"Has he ever flirted with you?" Weiss accused. Ruby instantly blushed and Yang cracked her knuckles.

"Not if he values his life he hasn't." Crue could see her hair flare dangerously at the idea of anyone trying out moves on her little sister.

" _THAT! Is why I ain't messing with the mains."_ Crue thought. He didn't realise it at first, but the bullhead had started moving a short while ago. Crue gazed out the window, staring at the moving scenery. "Wow. It's so pretty." Crue muttered, staring down.

"Yeah. Beacon's got some of the best views." Ruby said, joining Crue by the window and looking out at the sights.

…

A short while later, the bullhead landed, the group getting off and making their way into Vale. Crue just stared at his surroundings, wide eyed and slack jawed. " _I am actually in Vale. It's amazing how I keep forgetting this stuff wasn't real like a week ago."_

"The first thing you need is a toothbrush." Weiss told him. "And some toiletries. Have you showered since you've been here?" Weiss asked, raising an eyebrow.

Crue held up a single finger and opened his mouth, then lowered his finger and closed his jaw. "To be fair, someone must have cleaned me in the infirmary, cause I was covered in Grimm blood." He defended. That seemed reasonable enough.

Weiss held a small sneer. "Well you can have your first _proper_ shower tonight."

"Yeah. And we can go through the stuff you bought." Yang joked, lightly elbowing Crue.

"Something tells me you won't want to see what he buys." Blake smirked, causing Crue to blush.

"I don't want to know what you're suggesting." He put his hands up, blocking out anything Blake may say. "I'm just here to try and survive."

They entered a shop that held everything Crue would have needed and more. He let out a low whistle, looking at all of the merchandise. "This place should have everything you need." Weiss told him, examining a white pencil case.

Crue walked through the aisles, looking at everything the store had to offer. " _You're going to make me get blue stuff again aren't you."_ Crue thought as he idly picked up a dark blue toothbrush. " _Seriously. What is your deal with blue? Is it symbolic or some shit? Does it secretly show your deep depression?"_

Crue stopped after he picked up a set of blue boxers. " _Ok, that was too far."_ He picked up everything else he needed if he was going to live in a college, all of it varying shades of blue. Just before going to pay for everything he had acquired, he realised something dreadful.

"Weiss." He hissed from behind a shelf, getting the attention of the heiress. Weiss joined him in the aisle, wondering what he needed her for. "I have, a problem."

"What is it?" Weiss asked, instinctively taking a step back.

Crue fiddled with his fingers awkwardly. "I, don't know how money works." He looked down at the ground, refusing to meet her eyes.

"I'm sorry, what?" Weiss said in disbelief.

"I forget how lien works!" Crue told her. "I can't remember what the different cards mean and it's just so confusing." He sighed lightly. " _I ligit don't know how this shit works. So you better give me a decent explanation."_

"I see." Weiss said, trying not to laugh. "Well, it's quite simple really. Let me see your wallet." Crue handed over the requested item. Weiss opened and took out four different coloured cards.

"Now, each card is a different currency. You see that little dot." Weiss pointed a pale finger at a green card. Crue nodded. "That tells you how much the card is worth." The card's design was simple. On the four corners it held an 'L' with a line through it. In the centre was a circle with the map of Remnant. Under the circle were dots.

"If you don't feel like counting just remember it this way." Weiss split the cards up based on colour. "Green is one. Turquoise is five. Pink is ten. Yellow is twenty. Blue is fifty." Crue took the cards off her, examining them.

"Anything bigger?" He asked, flitting through the cards. Weiss looked in his wallet, flicking through what was left.

"You don't have anything larger than that. But for future reference, grey is one hundred, white is one thousand." She handed the wallet back to Crue, who took it gratefully.

"Great. Thanks Weiss." He smiled at her. She got a faint blush as she smiled back.

"Don't worry about it. It's not like I could let someone go around not knowing how currency works." She turned around and walked down the aisle, stopping to pick up a pen with a snow flake on it.

" _TUSNDERE!"_ Crue called out within his mind. He walked away from the scene, approaching the person behind the counter. " _Oh it's the old dude."_ Crue thought as he set the purchases down, smiling at the man.

The elderly shopkeep smiled back, tallying up his total. A small ding sounded and it came to 35 Lien. The man held up a plastic bag in his hand, making an enquiring noise. Crue shrugged. "Yeah, sure why not." The man hit another button and the number changed to 36.

Crue took out his wallet and looked at the Lien, recalling Weiss' lesson. "Yellow is twenty, pink is ten, turquoise is five, green is one." He handed over a card of each of those to the wrinkled man, who took them and placed them in the register.

He nodded to Crue and handed him the bag with his items in it. Crue left the shop, seeing the other four outside waiting for them, going over their own purchases. They all looked up when Crue exited, eyes shining. Crue gripped his bag tight. "So, what you guys get?"

"Not getting out of that easy Crue." Yang smirked. Crue's head fell, feeling as tough that would be the answer.

"I just got regular stuff. Toothbrush. Toothpaste. Shampoo. Underwear. Writing utensils." He explained. "That place was strangely well stocked." He murmured.

"Yeah. But it didn't have any ammo though. Or mods." Ruby told him. "And that's why we're going there." Ruby pointed to a small looking shop, named 'The Knight's Table'.

"Sounds like a restaurant." Crue muttered, entering the store. He glanced to the cashier, and saw he was a strong burly looking man. " _Uh oh. This guy is different. That means something importants gonna happen."_ Crue wandered the aisle, looking at all of the strong and complex weapons.

Crue stopped rather suddenly, feeling something tug at him. " _What are you playing at?"_ Crue wondered, following the direction he was being led to. He came to a stop in front of a set of helmets upon a row of shelves. His eyes flitted from helmet to helmet, trying to figure out why he was brought there.

His eyes rested on a single helmet that was shaded a dark green. It covered the entire face, save for two slits that the wearer could see through. It didn't appear to have a mask that could be lifted up, but rather it had two latches at its neck.

Crue took the helmet from its place and unlatched it. It split in half down its sides. He stared at the inside. It didn't seem to be any different. He hesitantly placed it on his head, taking in to consideration the ears that he wasn't all that used to yet.

He closed the helmet over his head and stared out. He looked at his hands, noting how his breathing became somewhat louder. " _You want me to get this don't you."_ Crue thought, feeling the helmet with his hands.

" _And I'm guessing that means I'm going to be doing some shit that the others shouldn't know about."_ He unclasped the helmet and took it off, shaking his hair. " _Well, as long as it means they don't get hurt. I'm fine with it."_

He tucked the helmet under his arm and approached the counter. Before he did, he stopped and stared at one weapon in particular. " _If I'm going to be undercover or some shit, I'm going to need a different weapon, cause my hurl is pretty unique."_

He checked the price tag on the weapon. " _Well fuck."_ The weapon was well out of his price range. He checked the others, noticing they were all extremely expensive.

" _I hope you figure something out."_ Crue thought as he placed the helmet on the counter and took out his wallet. The burly man grunted and punched in some numbers. The tally came up to 80 Lien. "Blue." Crue muttered, taking out two fifties and handing them to the man.

He gave him the appropriate change in return, and nodded outside. Crue nodded back, placing the helmet into his plastic bag and walking outside. He was surprised to see there wasn't anyone else out there. He attempted to lean against a lamp post, but fell through it.

Stumbling, Crue looked up to the lamppost, noticing it flicker. "Oh. It's a hologram. Weird." Crue thought aloud.

"Just let me do the talking." Crue's hearing picked up a voice. He craned his head, looking for the source.

"Of course, oh master thief." Crue's eyes narrowed as he realised to whom both voices belonged. At the end of the street, Crue watched as two people, a dark skinned girl with green hair, and a grey haired boy, entered a store called…

"Tukson's Book Trade." His fist clenched. "You've got to be shitting me." He began to walk towards it, but stopped when he heard his name being called.

"Crue!" He turned around to see the group staring at him. More specifically, his face. "We wanted to ask you something." Ruby told him, her silver eyes beaming at him.

"Uh, ok. What?" He asked, desperate to get to the book store, and put an end to this before it began.

"What colour are your eyes?" The question brought Crue's mind to a halt, as he stared at Ruby.

"What do you mean? They're blue. Can't you see?" He waved a hand in front of his own face.

"You're wearing sunglasses." Yang told him. Crue blanked.

"I'm wearing sunglasses?" He asked, bringing a finger up to his face, poking where his eye should be. When he saw his finger press against an invisible field, he realised they were telling the truth. "How long have I been wearing them?"

He took the sunglasses of his face, instantly wincing at the sudden increase in brightness. "Uh, I don't know. You were wearing them when we first met you." Ruby told him. Crue rubbed his eyes. " _In the infirmary?"_

He eventually opened his eyes without wincing, and stared right at Ruby. "Oh my god." He whispered, causing Ruby's face to go red.

"W-What?" She asked, worried she had something on her face.

"You are so cute."

The next thing Crue knew he was flying through the air, a burning pain where his nose should be. " _I just said Ruby was cute in front of Yang."_ Crue realised as he cartwheeled in the air. " _Totally worth it."_ Crue came to an abrupt halt, when he crashed through a window.

"Well. That's gonna hurt like a bitch tomorrow." He reached up to grab something, but only succeeded in pulling down a series of books on top of himself. He shakily stood up, holding a single book in his hand. "Oh. I was looking for this." His eyes finally looked to see where he had landed.

His eyes widened when he realised exactly where he was, and what was about to happen. There were three people in the room, all of them staring at him with eyes as wide as dinner plates. "Oh. Hey there. Sorry for breaking your window." He chuckled, rubbing the back of his head, then wincing.

"Ow!" He hissed. "Hey listen." He said, pointing at the oldest and largest person there. "I will pay back the two of you." Tukson showed a look of confusion.

"There's uh, only one of me." He told Crue. Crue frowned and shook his head.

"No way. If there's only one of you, why's that guy with the pink hair behind the counter too?" He pointed slightly to the left of Tukson. Tukson's face turned into one of recognition, then sorrow. " _Man I love fucking with people."_

"Uh, maybe you should go. I think you've hurt your head." The girl said. Crue immediately turned to glare at her, causing her to lean back in surprise.

"I can't do that." Crue told her coldly.

"Why not?" The boy asked, stepping up beside Emerald. Crue glared equally as harshly at him, causing him to stumble backwards.

"Someone will die." Crue made sure to stare Emerald straight in her blood red eyes as he said it. He watched as Emerald's eyes widened, and her hands began slowly reaching around her back.

"And who would that be?" She asked hesitantly, hands creeping ever closer to her weapons.

Crue took a stance and jabbed a thumb at his chest. "ME!" He announced, causing everyone's jaws to drop. "I THINK I GOT A CONCUSSION!" To add to the lie, Crue fell over onto his side.

"CRUE!" Several voices called out. Crue raised his head to see the entirety of RWBY standing by the broken window. Yang and Ruby instantly jumped through it, whereas Blake and Weiss took the more civilised route and entered through the door.

Crue was hoisted to his feet by Yang, causing his head to spin. "Alright, that was my bad." She admitted. "It was one of the weakest compliments you could have given her." Yang said, dusting Crue off.

"Also the truest." Crue replied, holding up a finger. Yang's eye twitched as her patting down became rougher.

"Yang. He doesn't need another case of amnesia." Ruby warned, prying her sisters arms from Crue.

"Thanks." Crue smiled. "Who are you?" He watched as Yang and Ruby's face turned to shock and horror. "Ah I'm kidding." He brought the two into a deep hug. They instantly squirmed and tried to free themselves. Crue just held on as he watched Emerald and Mercury through Yang's mane.

The two of them realised that they were compromised with so many people now there. "Don't worry Crue." Weiss told him. "I've informed paramedics and they should be here shortly."

Crue released the two sisters and instantly turned to Weiss. "Aww. Thank you Snowy!" He said, bring Weiss in for a hug and lifting her up slightly. Weiss' pale face instantly turned red as she began whacking Crue's back, trying to get him to let go.

Crue spun once, eyes searching the shop, noting the absence of the two antagonists. He dropped her and clapped his hands on her shoulders. "That was a nice hug Snowy. But you should practice more often."

His eyes then fell on Blake, who tensed immediately, fearing what was going to come. "Don't worry Kitty. I've got something better than a hug." She took a few steps back in preparation to dash. Crue reached down and picked up a black book with two red stripes. He tossed it to Blake, who caught it easily.

Once her eyes fell on the cover, a deep blush settled over her face. "I. Crue. It's not." She tried. She slowly made her way over to Tukson and placed the book on the counter. "I would like to purchase this book please." She whispered.

Crue smiled widely at the action. " _Come on dude! This concussion thing is hard to pull off!"_ He said within his mind. His prayers were answered when a small siren sounded. The siren stopped as a few people peered into the broken window.

"Hello!" Crue waved at them. The people were wearing white uniforms with red streaks on them.

"I take it you are the one with the concussion?" One of them asked, a generic looking man. Crue nodded happily. He seemed to sigh at Crue's actions. "Alright, you four, out." He pointed to RWBY, who opened their mouth to protest.

"It's alright guys!" Crue told them. "These guys must be really good at their job! Come on, I'll give you another big hug before you go." He stretched his arms out wide. That action alone was enough to send them running. "Ok. Rude."

The medics approached Crue, inspecting his head. One of them made a disgruntled sound. "Jeez kid. It's only a bruise. You act like your head came off." He grabbed a small ice pack and handed it to Crue. "Just keep that on your head and you'll be fine." He grabbed his medical kit and exited. "I better be paid overtime." He muttered as he exited.

Once they were alone, Crue sighed in relief and turned to Tukson, who was still standing there, confused. "Ok. Now that they're out of the way." He said calmly, tossing the ice pack away. Tukson noticed his change of personality, and was immediately on edge.

"Good. You noticed. Shame you didn't notice earlier." Crue told him, staring at his amber eyes.

"What are you talking about?" Tukson asked.

"I'm about to tell you something, and you can't freak out." Crue said, trying to calm him down with hand gestures. From the frown on his face, it didn't seem like it would work. "For one, I know we're the same." Crue pointed to his wolf ears.

Tukson let a light gasp escape his throat. "What else do you know?" He threatened.

"That you were part of White Fan-" Crue was cut off as Tukson's hand clamped around his throat, fingernails transformed into claws.

"And what? They sent you here to get rid of me?" He asked, eyes wide with anger and fear.

"Nope." Crue choked out. "That's what the two earlier were here for." Tukson dropped Crue out of shock. "Jesus dude!" He exclaimed, coughing. "I'm on your side."

"Who's Jesus?" Tukson asked, then shook his head. "Not important. Who are you?"

"Not important." Crue told him. "What is important, is that you get the fuck out of here." Crue noticed something shining on the ground. "The two earlier were sent here to kill you. And trust me, they would have succeeded."

Tukson looked as though he was about to argue, but Crue held up a hand. "I knew about you and your past, I know about what would have been your future." He bent down to pick up what was shining.

"Well, if what you say is true," Tukson opened his register. "Then I should get out of Vale." He grabbed as much Lien as he could carry and stuffed them into his pockets. "You should leave too while you can. They'll probably be back. I'm just glad I had already planned to get out." Tukson stopped stuffing in Lien as he noticed Crue, staring at what he had picked up.

In his hands were a pair of polarised sunglasses. Crue was staring at his own reflection, having not seen it in such a long time. Eyes the colour of blue steel stared back at him. "You don't need to worry about me." Crue said, flipping the sunglasses over. "I know everything that's about to happen."

Tukson just watched with a strange fascination. "Who are you?"

Crue smirked, placing his glasses back where they belonged.

"I am the Wolf."

…

"Oh look, she sent the kids again." Mercury and Emerald grit their teeth at the sound of the obnoxious voice, belonging to one Roman Torchwick. "This is turning out just like the divorce." He compared, smothering the two of them with his arms.

Emerald shuddered slightly, and not thanks to the temperature of the warehouse they were currently in. "Spare us the thought of you procreating." She requested.

"That was a joke." Roman rolled his eyes. "And this," He held up a slip of paper. "Might just tell me where you've been all day." Emerald's eyes widened in disbelief as she began patting herself down. "I'm a professional sweetheart, pay attention, maybe you'll learn something."

Roman's eyes read over the paper, instantly turning into a frown once he recognised it. "Why do you have this address?" He asked. Neither said anything, sharing suspicious glances. "Let me guess. You tried to be grownups and sort this out on your own."

Mercury took a step forward. "Well it was better than doing nothing." He pointed a finger at Roman.

Roman grit his teeth in anger. "Listen to me you snot nosed punk. If it were up to me, I would take you and your little street rat friend and I would-" "You'd what, Roman?"

The voice cut across him like smooth silk, its owner revealing herself from atop a gangway. The woman wore a dark red dress with golden embroidery, and carried herself with an air of superiority. Roman chuckled awkwardly. "I'd, uh, not kill them?"

"Cinder!" Emerald cried out in joy, upon seeing the woman approaching them.

Cinder stepped right past Emerald, eyes on Roman. "I thought I made it clear you were to eliminate the would-be runaway."

"I was going to do that," Roman began, eyes on the two teenagers who shuffled awkwardly. "But these two lovelies thought they would do it for me." Cinder turned slowly, eyes on her subordinates.

"Did I not specifically instruct you two to keep your hands clean while in Vale." Cinder asked them rhetorically, not noticing the insulting faces Roman was making at the teens.

Emerald and Mercury shared a glance. The red eyed girl rubbed the back of her head awkwardly. "Well, they're still clean." She tried. She winced under Cinder's fierce gaze.

"What?" She asked, fire in her voice.

"It was going well." Mercury jumped in. "But then this idiot Faunus crashes through the window." He explained, Roman giving him an odd look.

"Really kid? You need to think of a better excuse than that." Roman leaned on his cane, enjoying the two being put under pressure.

"I'm serious." Mercury warned him. "He stood up and told the rat that he'd pay for the window. But he said he saw two of him, so I'm guessing he was pretty out of it."

"But then…" Emerald began, trailing off.

"Then what?" Cinder demanded.

"I tried to get him to leave, saying he should go get his head checked out. But he said he couldn't. And I asked why."

"What did he say?" Cinder asked coldly.

"Someone will die." Emerald met Cinder's eyes, whose eyes only widened a fraction of an inch in surprise. "He said it right when he was staring at me. It was like he knew what we were there for. And what we had planned. It was like he knew everything."

"Impossible." Cinder dismissed. "We have been extremely careful to not let anything slip. Unless someone went around blabbing their mouth." Her gaze was focused on Roman, who threw up his hands in defence.

"Hey don't look at me! I've been a little too busy stealing every speck of Dust in the kingdom to find time to go blabbing." Roman gestured to the large amount of crates that were stacked behind him.

Cinder frowned, turning back to Emerald and Mercury. "This, idiot Faunus. What did he look like?" She needed to know the description of a possible enemy.

"Uh, Blonde." Mercury recalled. "But like, brownish blonde. What do you call that?"

"Dirty blonde." Emerald added. "And his ears, his Faunus ones, they were like…" She trailed off, looking at the members of the White Fang that were roaming around. "That one!" She pointed a finger at a one grunt in particular, who was lifting up a crate. The member turned around upon being addressed.

"You!" Cinder instructed. "What Faunus are you?" While the Faunus did not appreciate the tone of voice, he knew better than to antagonise a pissed off woman.

"Wolf, ma'am." He responded, continuing his heavy lifting.

"And his eyes?" Cinder turned back to Emerald.

Emerald shivered slightly upon recollection. "Blue. Kinda kike steel. But, they felt as though they were looking right into my soul." Emerald brought a hand to her chest, her heart feeling somewhat cold.

"Blonde hair. Blue eyes. Wolf ears." Roman listed off the descriptions on his fingers. "Don't suppose you got a name do you?" He noticed the looks of awkwardness that Emerald and Mercury shared. "Well why didn't you lead with that!?"

"His name. What is his name?" Cinder commanded.

"We only got a first name." Emerald told her.

"Well what was it?" She seethed.

"Crue."

* * *

 _Change begins with Crue. Wow that rhyming. Also, glasses. Yeah. I thought I did a good job of hiding the fact he had them. He said he wasn't going to let anyone die. That includes Tucson. Anyway, hope you enjoyed. And as always, hope you enjoyed. Until next time._

 _-Friday_


	6. Memories Of A Different Time

"Hey Ruby." Crue asked as they walked to their next class. The young reaper looked up to him, raising an eyebrow. "What semester is it?"

"Oh, we're only in the first one Crue. But our second semester starts on Tuesday." She told him, momentarily stopping to tie her shoe.

Crue stopped too, but only to try and piece together what that meant. " _Alright, volume 2 starts Tuesday, that means the food fight will be Tuesday. But that means something's going to happen on Monday, otherwise it would just start today."_

Crue started walking again, once Ruby finished fixing her shoes. " _So what are you going to have happen today?"_

He didn't get an answer in Grimm Studies, nor did he get an answer in History. " _What are you playing at?"_ He wondered as he followed team RWBY to their next class. "Wait, what do we have now?" Crue asked, wondering why they weren't heading to the lockers for combat practice.

"Didn't you read the time table I sent to your scroll?" Weiss asked. Crue took out his scroll instantly, unlocking it and searching for what Weiss meant. He noticed he had an unread message from her.

"Apparently I did not." Crue muttered, opening up the message. He glanced over the Monday column, checking the time against his scrolls clock. "Home Ec?" He read out loud.

"Yeah, Hunters need to know how to cook if they need to survive in the wilderness." Yang told him. "At least that's what the teacher says."

"Who's the teacher?" Crue asked. The group said nothing as they entered the classroom.

"Good afternoon students." A voice said. Crue froze on the spot upon hearing the voice. "Nice to see you're all on time."

" _You are shitting my fuck."_ Crue thought, staring at the teacher. It was a woman with grey eyes and blonde hair in an undercut. She wore a chef's uniform that was ripped at the shoulders, showing off a whole arms worth of tattoos.

Behind her, supported on a plaque was a bright red chainsaw. "We're going to be making Beef Stroganoff today, so find your partner, and get cooking." She noticed Crue looking at her and approached him.

"Hello. Ozpin told me you were new here. My name is Ramsay Griffon." She told him smiling. Crue just nodded, not believing what he was seeing. "Seeing as you're new you'll probably need a partner."

Crue nodded once more, unable to believe what he was seeing. " _You put Griffon in this? Or did something update since I got in here?"_

"Ah, Velvet's free." Crue's eyes noticed the pair of bunny ears dipping under a counter, retrieving some pots and pans. "Go on and make some friends." She gave him a slap on the back, sending him in the direction of the rabbit Faunus.

Velvet's ears shuffled slightly at the sound of the slap. She turned around and saw Crue approaching her, rubbing his rear in pain. She smiled gently at him. "Hello Crue. Nice to see you again."

"You too Velvet." Crue said, wincing slightly as he joined her at the counter. He grabbed an apron from a hook. He tied it around his back quickly. "Are you ok with making this? You being a vegetarian and all?"

"It's very considerate of you to ask, but I'll be fine. I'm actually an omnivore." Velvet told him smiling. "Granted, if there is a choice between fruit or veg and meat, I'll go for the veg." She turned to the counter, ready to prepare the ingredients, only to find them already diced and sliced.

Velvet didn't realise that while she was talking, Crue was already halfway through the recipe. "Crue? How are you doing that?" She asked incredulously.

"Doing what?" Crue questioned as he poured pasta into a pot of boiling water. Velvet said nothing, her mouth hanging slightly agape as she watched Crue speed around the counter, almost completing the recipe in an inhuman amount of time.

He had just finished pouring the creamy sauce when Velvet tapped him on the shoulder. "Yes?"

"Would you like some help? You're doing an awful lot by yourself?" Velvet told him, concern evident in her voice. Crue raised an eyebrow, unsure as to what she meant.

He then looked at his hands, and saw the container that held the sauce he had made in one, and a whisk in another. "Oh." He almost dropped them in surprise. "I was kinda on autopilot there." Crue stopped what he was doing and set the utensils down.

"Guess it's just me paying you back for the Dust class." He smiled at her. Velvet smiled back and began assisting Crue in the making of the meal. Quite a short while later, they had finished the Beef Stroganoff, and Griffon came over to inspect it.

"Done already?" She said sceptically. "Let's just see how it turned out." She took a fork and tried the dish.

"Amazing." She exclaimed, much to the surprise of Velvet, and Crue to an extent. "Well done. Top marks for both of you." Out of the corner of his eye, Crue was Weiss' jaw drop at the expression. "Now, tidy up and you can leave when you're done."

With that, she left the pair to go and inspect the other's works, all of whom were still only halfway done. "I'm surprised that went so well." Velvet muttered.

"Same." Crue replied. Velvet sent him an odd look.

"What do you mean? Did you not know you could cook that well or something?" She asked. Crue knocked his knuckles against his head. "Oh, right. Sorry."

They fell into comfortable silence as they put the rest of the dishes away. All the while, Crue was having a silent conversation with someone. " _I know I was an alright cook, but to finish a stroganoff in like what, twenty minutes? What the hell is that about?"_

The two had cleaned up and exited the room, leaning against the opposing wall. "So that was Home Ec." Crue said aloud.

"Yeah. Mrs. Griffon is real nice. But, uh, that chainsaw isn't just for show." Velvet told him, shuddering slightly. Seeing Crue's raised eyebrow, she continued the story. "Well, before becoming a huntress, she used to be a woodcarver."

" _Fucking seriously?"_ Crue nodded, wanting her to go on.

"Well, at one carving competition a few Grimm attacked. She used her chainsaw to mow them down. From that moment on she decided she'd become a huntress." Velvet finished her story while staring at the door to the Home Economics room.

"You said Mrs right?" Crue asked. Velvet nodded in confirmation. "So she's married?" Velvet nodded once more.

"Yep. I don't know much about him though. All I know is he used to serve with the Atlas Military, and now he runs a bar." She recalled, causing Crue's face to blank. "I think it was called Chicken Mouth or something." Crue required immeasurable willpower in order to not burst out laughing at the name.

"Huh. A bar." Crue said while holding back his laughter. "Interesting profession."

Velvet nodded in agreement. "I don't really go to bars that often so I wouldn't know what it's like. I'd say Yang knows though." She suddenly gasped lightly. "I mean- I'm not saying that's a bad thing or she's that kind of person but-"

She was silenced with a hand from Crue. "Velvet. Relax. I know what you meant. And yeah, she does seem the sort to know about that kind of thing."

Velvet smiled appreciatively and waited for the bell to ring. "Wait. Why are we waiting?" Crue asked, turning to Velvet. She opened her mouth to reply, but found no answer.

"I'm, not sure." Velvet realised. "Do we have a reason to wait?" She asked Crue, who shrugged in response. "Well, there are no classes on after this are there?"

Crue shook his head, taking out his scroll and checking the planner that Weiss had sent him. "Nope. Lunch after this." Velvet nodded, and gained a look that showed she was thinking of something.

"I wonder if…" She trailed off, staring down the hall. Crue followed her gaze, but found nothing of interest within the hall. "The rest of my team is probably free. Would you like to meet them?" Velvet phrased the question with a slight tilt of her head, making it physically impossible for Crue to deny her.

"Sure." He shrugged, trying not to contract diabetes. "You make them out to be pretty great." He smirked, seeing Velvet's light blush.

"Yeah. They're pretty nice." She began walking down the hall, prompting Crue to follow her. "I'm sure they'll like you. They don't have any problems with Faunus." Her ears twitched slightly as she told Crue that piece of information.

"Well I would hope not." He smiled at her. The two Faunus made their way down the hall, making light conversation. They had exited into the Beacon courtyard so they could travel to the second year dorms. "So this is where the second years stay." Crue muttered.

"Yep. Right across from the first years." Crue turned around and saw the building where he was currently living in directly across from him. "The third years are behind there, and the fourth years are behind here." Velvet pulled open the door to the dorm building.

"What about exchange dorms?" Crue asked, although he already knew the answer.

"Um, from here it would be west. Although if you're coming from the first years it's to the east." Crue just nodded at the information, a small part of him feeling as though he would be required to say it at some point.

"You guys get lifts?" Crue asked, as Velvet stood in front of two metal sliding doors. She smiled sheepishly.

"Yes. I'm not sure why though. Beacon is full of strange arrangements." Velvet told him as they entered the elevator.

" _Too true. Too true."_ Crue's mind instantly went to the thought of what lay under Beacon. " _Wait. That's there right now. I could probably go and see Amber if I fucking felt like it."_ He thought. " _But something tells me you're not going to let that happen."_

The elevator dinged and allowed them out, Crue allowing Velvet to take the lead. "So, your teammates are Coco, Yatsuhashi and Fox. Right?" He 'clarified' with Velvet.

"Yep. They're all really nice people. There's one thing you should know though." Velvet told him, voice now strangely serious. Crue stopped moving, wanting to know what he should know. "Never. Ever. Insult Coco's clothes."

Crue tilted his head to the side, before recalling what Coco had done to a Beowulf that destroyed her favourite clothing store during the Breach. "Understood." Crue responded, his voice somewhat high.

Velvet smiled and continued on, stopping a short while later outside a white door with a picture of a small cup of coffee on it. She knocked on the door and swiped her scroll against the lock. "Guys! I'm back!"

Crue peered into the room Velvet had entered, noticing that the room was very much like RWBY's in a sense. There were bunkbeds, for a start. But they appeared to be professionally made. One half of the room was decorated with different kinds of posters, while the other half was excruciatingly bare.

"Anyone home?" Velvet called. Crue also noticed that the room was void of any living beings. Crue followed Velvet into the room, glancing around it and noting things of interest.

"In here Velv." A voice said. Crue and Velvet's heads both turned to a small side door. When Crue focused his hearing, he could hear running water, indicating that someone was using the dorms shower.

"Take your time Coco!" Velvet replied, sitting down on her bed, which was pink and decorated with carrots. Crue couldn't help but snicker at the covers. Velvet wondered what he was laughing at, and followed his gaze. Her cheeks turned a light shade of pink when she realised what he was staring at.

"Hey I don't judge." Crue said, putting up his hands defensively. "I just think it's cute." Velvet's blush intensified at the comment, but she said nothing.

"They were a gift." She muttered.

"From who?" Crue asked. On cue, the water stopped and a door opened. Out of habit, Crue turned to see the origin of the noise. The moment his eyes found the source, he clenched them shut. "Ah! Shit! Jesus!" He said, waving his hands back and forth.

Coco had exited the shower, and walked into the room, stark naked. She had obviously only expected Velvet to be there, and what's a little casual nudity between girls. What she had not expected, was a boy she had never seen before to be there, and accidentally seen her in her birthday suit. Her least favoured of all suits.

She was so shocked that for several seconds her mouth just hung agape. Velvet's eyes were wide in both horror and hilarity. Coco's voice eventually found its way to her throat. "If it's that bad then stop looking!" She shouted at Crue.

"I am!" Crue shouted back. He then realised that, due to his sunglasses, Coco didn't know his eyes were closed. "Look, my eyes are closed under these I swear." He even took them off to show Coco his eyes screwn shut. "See?"

He could feel Coco's death stare, and sighed. "Look, point me out of the room, and I'll wait for you to not be naked." He waited to be directed, but nothing happened. He was tempted to open an eye, but figured that it probably wouldn't end well for him.

He tried to turn and find the door, but his hands only grasped air. "Velvet. A little help please." He heard her get up off the bed and direct him towards the door. "Thank you." He said as he closed the door behind him.

Once outside the dorm room, the first thing Crue did was whack his head repeatedly against the opposite wall. " _Son! Of! A! Mother! Fucker!"_ He finally stopped after feeling a bruise starting to form. " _Why did you do that? Do you enjoy torturing me?"_

"Crue, you can come in now." Velvet called from inside the dorm. Crue sighed in relief and went to enter the room, only to find the door locked.

"I can't get in." He told her. A few short moments later the door opened, revealing a blushing Velvet. He entered the room, instantly feeling the cold gaze that Coco was giving him.

"Look." He said, staring at Coco, who was now fully dressed in her usual attire. "How about we just pretend that never happened." He offered. Coco seemed to weigh the offer within her head.

"Deal." Coco agreed, causing Crue to sigh in relief. "And I better not find out you told anyone about this." She warned.

"Who am I gonna tell? I barely know anyone here." Crue exasperated. "The only people I know properly are team RWBY. And if I tell anyone there Yang wouldn't let me hear the end of it."

Coco seemed to nod at this. "Alright. And she'd probably tease me about it too. So, what just happened doesn't leave this room." Crue nodded, and then both of them turned to Velvet, who was still wearing a light blush.

"I-I didn't see anything." She said, not making eye contact with either person, which was actually quite easy seeing as they were both wearing sunglasses.

"Nice shades by the way." Coco complimented, peeking over her own black, wire-rimmed aviators to stare at Crue's glasses, his being a pair of mirrored shield sunglasses.

"Thanks." Crue said, taking off his glasses and giving them a twirl at the ear piece. "You got some good ones yourself." He nodded to Coco's own glasses, placing his own back on his head.

"Why thank you. Good to know you have a good sense of fashion. Although, I could gather that already." Her eyes roamed over Crue's appearance, taking in his semi-casual suit, minus jacket. He looked ready for a night on the town, at 11 in the morning.

"Yours isn't too bad either." Crue said with a smirk, taking in Coco's clothing. Sure he had seen it before in an animated form, but in reality he could see just how well they fit together. "Where'd you get your hair did?" He asked, referring to Coco's lightened locks.

"There's a place down in Vale called 'Colours of the Wind'." Coco told him, idly twirling the dyed hair between her fingers.

"Huh." Crue muttered, putting a hand to his chin. "Wonder if I should get my hair dyed." He ran his hand through his dark blonde hair, briefly touching his extra ears.

Coco brought a finger to her lip in consideration. "Maybe. What do you think Velv?" The fashionista turned to her long eared companion. Velvet seemed to jump upon being called out.

"W-Well, I feel like you would look nice with silver hair. I haven't heard of many blonde wolves." Velvet murmured. Crue genuinely took that into consideration for a short moment.

"Silver, huh." He pulled at a part of his hair so he could see it clearer. "You know, I think I'll just stick with what I've got until the opportunity arises." He left his hair as it was, deciding to hold off on possibly dying it.

"Well, suit yourself." Coco said with a wave of her hand.

"Already have." Crue winked beneath his glasses, gesturing to his current attire. Coco smirked widely.

"Oh, I like you." She chuckled. "Shame you're only a freshman. I'm sure you would've been a lovely boyfriend." Coco waited for his reaction, and was surprised when she didn't get one.

"I'm sure I would have." He said, smirking slightly. "Unfortunately I can't remember shit." He said, knocking on his head. "So as far as I know, I might already have a girlfriend. Can't go around cheating now can I?"

"Oh, right. Velvet mentioned that you had amnesia." Coco mused, putting a hand to her chin.

" _God bless you amnesia."_ Crue thought with a smile. " _And you would do well to remember what I said. I'm not dating any of the main protagonists."_

A loud ringing noise echoed throughout the room. "Oh, lunch is on." Velvet hopped up from her seat on the bed in happiness.

"Ah, I should probably be going then." Crue said, making his way towards the door. "Nice meeting you Coco."

"Same to you Crue." Coco called with a tip of her beret. The two brunettes watched as Crue exited the room, leaving the door open the tiniest bit. They heard him take two steps, and then stop.

"Jesus Christ you are huge." They heard him say. They then heard a sound like a piece of wet meat being slapped on a counter, and a gust of wind. "I deserved thaaaaaa…." His voice was lost to the world.

Shortly after, a somewhat peeved Yatsuhashi entered the room, followed by a chuckling Fox. Coco and Velvet sighed. "Yatsu. What did we say about hurting people who talk about your height?" Velvet put on a motherly tone as she scolded the much larger student.

Yatsuhashi's fingers came together awkwardly. "To not to."

Velvet nodded fiercely. "Crue was just surprised, was all." She told the giant softly. "I'm sure he didn't mean it."

Fox decided to speak up. "All I want to know is, who the hell is 'Jesus Christ'?"

…

"Crue? What happened to you?" Ruby asked, staring at the wolf Faunus as he sat down at the lunch table next to RWBY and JNPR.

"You look like you were thrown out a window." Jaune stated, looking at the frazzled appearance of his new male friend.

"That's not too far from the truth." Crue murmured, idly picking twigs and leaves from his mop of hair. "Long story short: Don't call Yatsuhashi huge."

Everyone seemed to understand at once what he meant. "Yeah, learnt that one the hard way." Jaune laughed, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly. "Here, let me help you with that." He offered, reaching behind Crue to clean up his hair.

"Thanks." He told the purer blonde. "How was Home Ec?" He asked the group. Weiss scowled lightly at him.

"It was disastrous for most of us." She responded coldly, a single blue eye on Ruby, who began whistling innocently. "The only ones that managed to complete the task properly were you and Velvet, Pyrrha, Ren and Nora."

"You did it on your own?" Crue asked, turning to Pyrrha. His head was then roughly turned back to face Ruby, courtesy of Jaune.

"No, I was with her. And stay still." Jaune told him. "We finished up pretty quickly after you and Velvet actually. We went outside to talk to you, but you weren't there."

"Oh, that's because I went with Velvet to her dorm." He said, idly eating a piece of meat. He noticed the silence that followed this sentence, and looked up to see everyone looking at him wide eyed. "To meet the rest of her team." He clarified. Everyone let out breaths of relief.

"I'm not going to even ask what you thought I was doing." Crue stated, digging back into his food.

"Well you know the phrase about going at it like rabbits." Yang teased. Everyone else at the table sighed.

"Yang. Your little sister is right there." Crue said, pointing his fork at Ruby, who had looked up from munching on a cookie to see what was going on.

Yang's eyes widened in fear upon realising what she just said. Her horrified lilac eyes turned to Ruby, who simply wore a questioning glance. "Ruby, do you know what that means?" Yang asked slowly.

Ruby shook her head, causing Yang and Crue to sigh in relief. "It means-" Several hands were placed on Nora's mouth, the first of which was Ren's. Crue could see Ren shudder slightly, presuming that Nora had licked the hand.

"Nora. Ruby is only 15. Please don't soil her mind." Ren told her, releasing his hand with a shake, trying to get saliva off. Nora saluted and continued eating her, pancakes.

" _Pancakes. Why am I not surprised."_ Crue thought, continuing on with his own plate. He took out his scroll and checked the time table, finding that they had no classes on after this. " _That means you're giving time for shenanigans to happen."_

While he was on his scroll, he checked all of the different applications that were on it. Music. Angry Mores. Gallery. Contacts. Remnant: The Game. " _Wait!"_ Crue scrolled back. " _Gallery."_ With a trembling finger, Crue tapped on the app.

The app opened instantly, showing Crue what he feared most. Pictures. _His pictures._ Pictures he took in his own world. Pictures that had been changed to fit this one. His grip on the scroll tightened upon seeing his friends. His friends that he might never return to. His friends whose faces may only exist upon this device.

He slowly placed the scroll back in his pocket and stood up, walking away from the table without looking back. This action did not go unnoticed by the group of eight, who all looked at each other in confusion as Crue left the cafeteria, most of his lunch remaining untouched.

Crue knew where he was going. Even though he had only been in the building properly for at least four days, he knew where the gymnasium was. He entered the combat simulation room, leaving his hurl at the side.

He turned to the console at the side, setting the battle droids to the highest difficulty, and highest amount. He stood in the middle of the room as the timer counted down. When it hit zero, ten robots appeared surrounding Crue, all of them making a dash at him at the same time.

Crue looked up at the robots with tears in his eyes, the show of sentiment hidden behind his glasses. He roared as he ran up to one and, using only his fists, knocked its head clean off. Emotions of every variety were running rampant inside Crue's mind.

Fear. Sadness. Regret. Guilt. These and many more were causing turmoil within his soul, causing his aura bar to fluctuate abnormally. But out of all these emotions, one he felt stronger than any.

 _Rage._

Rage, at whoever caused him to end up in this world. Rage, at whoever caused him to leave his friends behind. Rage, at whoever was putting him through all this agony. Rage, at these robots for simply existing. Rage, at everything.

He was fighting blindly while seeing red, falling droids one after another from sheer anger. When all the droids fell, Crue stood there, foot resting on the heads of the last one he defeated. He wanted to break it into tiny pieces.

But he didn't. Instead, he fell to his knees, tears dropping from behind his glasses onto where the face of the robot would be. In the reflection of the robot, he saw his own face looking down at him. That pained expression. One of complete and utter loss. One that showed a person had nothing left to live for.

Crue took off his sun glasses, flipping them around and staring into his own eyes that were red and puffy. He stared into his steely blue eyes, willing to see the eyes of his friends instead. To see their faces. Their smiles. Their imperfections. He just wanted to see them.

He didn't see them. He didn't see any of the faces of the friends he made in his life on Earth. Instead, he saw a face that had worried silver eyes, and dark brown hair with red tips. "Ruby?" Crue croaked out, not realising how hoarse his voice was.

"Crue, are you ok?" Ruby asked gently. Cure shook his head, lowering his glasses to the ground. "Do you want to talk about it?" Crue shook his head once more. "Ok." Ruby said nothing, simply deciding to just sit beside him in silence.

After around fifteen minutes, Crue finally spoke. "I just want to see them again." He said softly.

"See who?" Ruby asked. In response, Crue took out his scroll and opened up his gallery. He handed the scroll to Ruby, who observed it with wide eyes.

"I know them, but I don't. I feel like I know them, but they're different to how I think I know them." His eyes began watering again.

"And you want to see them." Ruby said, her voice showing understanding. "I know how you feel. I, lost my mom. I always want to see her. Even if it's just her telling me 'hi'. I visit her grave as often as I can, but I always miss the actual person."

Ruby's own eyes held small tears. Crue instinctively put an arm around her shoulder and pulled her close, allowing her to cry into his clothes. "Thanks." Ruby muttered.

"Don't mention it." Crue replied with a smile.

"Hey." Ruby sniffled. "I'm supposed to be here cheering you up. Not the other way around." She smiled lightly as she looked up to Crue.

"Well, you've done a good job." He said, picking his glasses up and putting them back on his head. "Hey, Ruby."

"Hmm?" Ruby looked up from her, surprisingly comfortable, resting place.

"Thanks."

* * *

 _A cute moment between Crue and Ruby, proceeded by a heartwrenching realisation of Crues. His home is gone. His friends are gone. Everyone he ever knew is gone. And that only makes him want to save this world more. He won't lose anyone else. That thing with Coco was pretty funny though. You remember what Crue said right. " **I'm not dating any protagonist from here."** Just think about those words for a moment. That's it for me now, and as always, I'll see you, next time._

 _-Friday_


	7. Welcome to Beacon

"We should let him sleep." Ruby told her teammates as they gazed at Crue, lying under Weiss' bed.

"Is this because of what he told you yesterday?" Yang asked her sister. Ruby nodded in confirmation. "Are you gonna tell us?" She shook her head.

"Nope. It's something Crue can tell you on his own time." With that, she skipped out of the room, happy that the new semester was beginning. The other three glanced at each other, before following after their leader.

The door closed, leaving Crue sleeping soundly without a care in the wor-"OW!" Crue rubbed his head where he had hit it off the bottom of Weiss' bed. "That's gonna hurt." He rolled out from under the bed, sitting up and resting his back against the frame.

"I still hate you." He said to no one. He stood and went to his dresser, which was installed only recently due to his new residence in the dorm room. It was bare, save for a few things lying on top. His scroll, his weapon, and a pair of dark blue headphones.

He opened his drawers and pulled out a random shirt. It didn't really matter what one he grabbed seeing as they were all the same. After slipping on the shirt he put on his tie and checked his scroll for the timetable for the day.

He saw that he had nothing on for the whole day. "Probably cause today is the start of the new semester." He yawned and threw on his school blazer. He wasn't exactly fond of it, but it was better than Goodwitch constantly berating him for not wearing it.

Crue grabbed his scroll, idly flicking onto his music. "As much as I hate you, I'm glad you let me keep my music. Even if you changed it." He mused as he passed by a song labelled 'Atlesian Idiot'. He stopped at a song called 'Wolverine OST'.

"Forgot I downloaded this." He pressed play, allowing the music to pass through his headphones and into his ears. Crue sighed in relief to have something familiar, even if it was just sound. "You may have fucked up Deadpool, but everything else was pretty good."

As he sat in the room, leaning against a desk, he realised something. "I've got a mask. I need a weapon. And seeing as I told Tucson 'I am the Wolf'…" He trailed off as he went into his gallery, ignoring the photos and clicking on his videos.

"Please be here, please be here…" Crue silently begged as he scrolled through the videos. "Yes!" He exclaimed as he found what he was looking for, a video with the title, 'Colin Furze – Wolverine Claws'.

"Well, guess I know what I'll be using." Crue muttered as he grabbed his belongings, minus his hurley, and exited the room, heading to Beacon's workshop, ready to use another person's knowledge and skills to help him in his quest.

He walked for a short while before entering the room. It reminded him of a blacksmiths, but with more hi tech contraptions. Crue cracked his fingers in a spread out motion and started the video. "All right. Let's do this."

…

"Man, you better have shown me doing that. It was a pain in the ass to make." Crue sat down on a stool, resting his legs from standing and working all morning. His creation lay on the table next to him. It was almost a complete replica of the one in the video, save for some special additions.

There was a dark blue metal covering the blades, hiding them from view, making them seem like a pair of gauntlets. The other was the bag, 'generously' provided by Beacon. The bag itself held the compressed air required for the claws to extend, but like the claws themselves, Crue covered it in a thin, navy metal.

He grabbed the weapon and slipped them on, putting on his blazer afterwards. The blazer completely hid the weapon, as well as the tubes that connected them with the bag. Crue tested the extension while wearing the blazer.

'SNKT'

The blades shot out rapidly, the noise echoing in the empty room. Crue could only smile in what appeared to be childish glee. "He was always my favourite X-man." Crue commented as he grabbed a small piece of wood.

Crue tossed the wood up in the air, and brought the claws down on them. The wood split into three pieces, the blades cleanly cutting through them. Of course, Crue had to make them a lot sharper than they were in the video, partially because they would actually be used, but mostly because Crue went a bit overboard in the 'danger' factor.

"Well, they'll definitely help against Grimm." Crue said as he retracted the claws. "As for someone with aura…" Crue didn't exactly know how he'd test that out without someone finding out that he had the claws.

"Well, I'll figure that out the hard way." Crue exited the room, putting on his headphones and making his way to the cafeteria. He was so focused on the music, that he did not see the hoard of people stampeding towards him until the last second.

Crue yelled in shock, and jumped onto a nearby wall, using his semblance to stay there out of harms way. He watched them all run, trying to figure out exactly why they were sprinting for their lives. Crue looked to where they had come from, and saw that they were running from the direction of the cafeteria.

Crue saw a body flying past the windows, and remembered something important. Crue leaped from his position on the wall and dashed towards the cafeteria. He stopped outside the door and raised his foot.

*WHABAM*

The door to the cafeteria flew open, causing all those inside it to look for the source of the noise. What they saw was a raised foot, and a rather annoyed looking Crue. Ren and Yang had frozen mid fight, surprised by the sudden intrusion.

Crue saw two extra people that did not belong to either team. A blonde haired monkey Faunus, and a blue haired boy with goggles. Crue marched forward, the doors closing behind him. "YOU GUYS ARE HAVING A FOOD FIGHT!?"

He slammed his fists down on two nearby tables, causing two loaves of bread to fly through the air towards him. Crue caught both of them and spun them in a circle, a wide smirk appearing on his face.

"Without me?" His smirk became infectious, each of the members of RWBY and JNPR smiling at the new addition to their fight. Crue jumped into the fray, causing Yang and Ren to leap back, their own food weapons ready for conflict.

The ninja and the dragon attacked at the same time. Crue brought his loaves up, crossing them over his shoulders in order to block both attacks. " _Man how stale is this bread."_ Crue contemplated as he knocked back both attackers, Ren flying much further than Yang did.

Crue turned back to the blonde, and only barely dodged a turkey being flung at his face. Crue tossed one of the loaves up in the air and grabbed the other with both his hands. He reeled the bread back as Yang threw her final flightless bird.

Crue brought the loaf down, connecting with the turkey and sending it flying back to Yang. The turkey smacked Yang right in the stomach, sending her flying back to where Ruby was holding a possibly unconscious Weiss.

Crue let his hand raise, and caught the loaf he had previously thrown skyward. He turned back to the JNPR side and saw Nora holding her Melon-hild. "Valkyrie!" Crue shouted, causing the ginger to look at him strangely.

Crue took a stance, both pieces of bread ready for the obvious onslaught that was to come. "I think you have a score to settle with me." He made a small 'bring it' motion with his hands, which only widened Nora's grin even more.

Nora yelled and swung her melon staff, ready to bring it down on Crue's head. Crue leaped back, only just avoiding the weapon of mass digestion. He brought the two of his loaves down on the metal pole of the weapon, and found out that as stale as the food weapons he was currently using may be, they were not enough to withstand being whacked against something made of metal.

The loaves snapped, leaving Crue weaponless. Nora smiled as she hit Crue to the other side of the dining hall. He hit the wall with an audible 'crack', leaving broken debris in his wake. Crue fell from the wall, landing on the ground on all fours. When he opened his eyes, he saw two things that made him grin widely, and somewhat ominously.

Crue grabbed the can of 'People Like Grapes' soda and shook it rapidly. Crue grabbed the other item, a small yellow package labelled 'Poppin'-Rox', and tore open the top of it. Crue covered the can with the small bag, and stood back up, just in time to see Yang crashing through the ceiling of the room, leaving a wide hole.

Crue jumped onto a nearby pillar and ran up it, using his semblance to run onto the ceiling. "FIRE IN THE HOLE!" Crue called as he hurled the makeshift candy bomb downwards to where Blake and Nora were currently fighting.

Everyone watched as the can seemed to fall in slow motion as Crue ran away from the soon to be explosion. He was aiming for the hole made by Yang, planning to jump through it and land on the roof. Unfortunately, Crue forgot something very important.

Gravity.

And gravity, is a bitch. Crue leaped towards the hole while running on the ceiling, but only realised his mistake when he did not become closer to the hole, instead continuing to fall toward the ground.

"I hate gravity." Crue muttered as he crashed into a table, just as the soda bomb exploded, sending Nora and Blake flying back to their respective teams. Crue sat up and noticed Ruby getting ready to sprint. Crue flipped the table over and hid behind it, knowing what was coming.

Half a second later, Ruby activated her semblance and sped towards team JNPR, bringing food and cutlery and cans of all kinds with her. Ruby reached the end of the hall, after picking up the whole of team JNPR in her whirlwind. She skid to a halt, causing the wall before her to crack from the pressure she exerted.

The team hit the wall, sticking there and only being able to turn their heads away from oncoming food storm. They were painted every colour of the rainbow with stains from the food and drink. Ruby landed a small distance away from her new Jackson Pollock painting, leaving the members of the team covered head to toe in condiments.

They fell from the wall, leaving four human shaped clean spaces on the cracked concrete. "Glad I wasn't caught up in that." Crue said, hopping over the table he had used as a shield. He approached the two teams, laughing along with them. However, before they could fully discuss the fight, the doors to the cafeteria were thrown open, revealing a very angered Glynda Goodwitch.

Weiss, only now realising that she just took part in a food fight, was so startled that she leaned back and accidentally slipped on a suspiciously placed banana peel. Weiss fell back and landed on one end of a bench, causing the other end to raise rapidly, inadvertently tossing the salad that was resting on it, and sending it directly to the blonde witch.

Glynda stopped the offending vegetables with a wave of her riding crop. She made several intricate motions, and the entirety of the hall seemed to come alive as tables righted themselves and walls and pillars alike were repaired.

"Children. Please, do not play with your food." While this was happening Crue was staring at the ceiling, silently counting in his head. He reached a hand out and placed it on the person's closest to him's shoulder. It turned out to be Nora, who looked at the offending hand oddly. Crue pushed her a pace or two away, and then waited.

"Three, two…" A blonde blur fell from the ceiling, landing with a 'thud' between Nora and Crue, both parties looking down to see Yang with a smile on her face. Crue lifted his head back up to Nora and met her eyes beneath his glasses.

"We cool?" He asked, hesitantly raising a fist. Nora smirked and copied the gesture.

"Frosty." They bumped fists and helped up Yang. They all smiled and laughed at each other's appearance, trying to get as many stains as they could off their uniform. Crue watched as Yang threw a thumbs up to Goodwitch, and also Ozpin, who had appeared at some point.

Using his advanced hearing, he could make out the conversation that Ozpin and Glynda were having. He just caught the tail end of it, fists clenching slightly as Ozpin said: "It's not a part they'll get to play forever."

The headmaster exited through the door, leaving the two teams and Crue to themselves. "We need a shower." Everyone said simultaneously, before bursting out laughing. The group exited through a backdoor, giving them a quicker route to the dorms where they could shower.

The teams separated into their respective dorms, Crue of course joining RWBY. As soon as he closed the door behind them, he turned to the girls informed them, "I'm going last." There was no argument, between Crue and the others that is.

Weiss and Yang started arguing about who should go first, Crue didn't pay attention, instead putting on his headphones and drowning out the argument. Unfortunately, as he had two sets of ears it didn't prove that effective.

Eventually, they got everything sorted with Weiss going first, then Yang, Blake and finally, Ruby. Ruby deciding she should go last because as a team leader she needs to make sacrifices. Crue was lost in his music, idly flicking through the names, and snickering at the name changes.

" _Dust Punk. My Chemical Semblance. Imagine Dragons. Wait that's the same."_ Crue was brought out of his inner thoughts by Ruby, who had tapped him on the shoulder. Turning, Crue saw Ruby looking at him while holding a deep red towel over her body. "She's _15."_ He tried to remind 'The Author'. " _Not happening."_

"Showers free." She told him, walking past him as he got up. Crue took off his sunglasses and set them down by his scroll. He took off everything that wasn't covering something important, such as his shirt and trousers.

He grabbed his own dark blue towel and headed into the bathroom, planning on not stinking like gone off sword fish. Once Crue had entered, Yang instantly went to where he had been sitting and grabbed his scroll, which Crue had incidentally left unlocked.

"Yang! What are you doing?" Ruby called out to her sister, not wanting an invasion of Crue's privacy. The shout caught the attention of both Weiss and Blake, the latter was still drying off her hair.

"Relax Rubes. I'm just checking his internet history." It took a moment for what she meant to sink in. When the words finally hit their mark, each girl screamed and tried to take the scroll off Yang.

"I don't want to know what he's been doing with that scroll!" Weiss cried out. "Haven't you ever heard of ignorance is bliss." She said as she tried to wrestle the device from the blondes hands.

"Yang what if it's something disgusting!" Blake cried, only to be rebutted by Yang.

"Then you'd probably be into it." She had finally accessed the internet history, only for the screen of it to be covered by Ruby.

"Yang how would you like it if we did the same to you!" The brunette gripped the scroll, trying to rip it from her sisters grasp.

"There's nothing on mine!" Yang told her as she removed the reapers hand. She finally laid her eyes on what Crue had been searching, and groaned audibly. "Awww, there's nothing good." She tossed the scroll in the air and walked off.

Ruby managed to catch it before it shattered onto the ground, electing a sigh of relief from the three who tried to stop Yang. Because Yang had said there was 'nothing good', Ruby saw it as a sign that it would be safe for her to read.

Her eyes scanned the sites and searches, and felt her silver eyes widen. "Woah. Why was Crue looking up advanced sharpening techniques?" Weiss and Blake peered over their leaders shoulders to join her in reading.

"Metal polishing. Dust infusion. Pressurised Air Transferal?" The other two seemed like something Crue would have actually looked up, but the last one caught Weiss by surprise. "Perhaps he's trying to upgrade, what did you say his weapon was called again?" She turned to her partner.

"Setanta." Ruby responded. "And the others all make sense, but I can't think of how pressurised air would help it." They decided they would ask Crue about it when he came back. Ruby exited the internet tab, and saw the Music app.

She clicked on it, to the surprise of the two on her shoulder. "I thought you wanted to protect his privacy." Blake said from her place above Ruby's head. The Faunus' words caused Yang to shoot back over to Ruby, resting her chin on her younger sisters head.

"What are we spying on him with?" Yang asked. Ruby sighed lightly.

"We're not spying on him. I was checking his music." Ruby responded as she scrolled through the list of songs. "I think I've heard of some of these." She muttered as she stared at the names and artists.

"Oh!" Yang suddenly exclaimed, to the dismay of the others whose ears were in close proximity to her mouth. "Go back up a sec!" Ruby did as instructed, waiting for Yang to tell her when to stop. "There!"

Yang's hand reached over Ruby and pointed at a song. "Blake and Yellow." She pressed the song, the music taking a moment to load.

"I think it said 'Black and Yellow'." Blake commented, realising that Yang's decision for stopping on that song was a pun. The rest of them said nothing as the song started, Yang growing a large smile as the song continued playing.

The blonde grabbed her raven haired partner and began swinging her around the room to the beat of the music. Blake couldn't help but smile slightly and join in the dance. The other half of the team watched the duo with amused expressions.

"I don't suppose there's something called 'Red and White' is there?" Weiss said, flicking through Crue's music. Ruby joined her in the search, trying to find something that may suit Weiss' tastes.

"I don't see one. Ohh, but this sounds like one you'd like." Ruby said, tapping on the song that she had found called 'Crystallize'. The song began playing immediately, much to the dismay of the other two who were still dancing.

"Hey!" Yang complained. "It was getting good." The bruiser and the Faunus approached the other two, listening to the music that was now playing. It sounded like a mix between violin and techno. Weiss' face lit up brightly, and fell into a small ballerina routine, dancing in time with the music.

Unlike the duo before them, Weiss' dance was much more graceful, full of pirouettes and kicked legs. The other three watched in fascination, before Ruby returned to the song list, hoping to find a song suiting her tastes.

"This one sounds cool." Ruby muttered as she tapped on the song title. The music changed instantly, bringing Weiss' show to an abrupt end. Weiss was visibly annoyed at the change, but said nothing as she had changed Yang and Blake's song.

There was series of tech-y notes, before a robotic voice began singing. " _Harder. Better. Faster. Stronger.~"_ Ruby began jumping around the room, making stiff motions with her arms and legs. The others watched in amusement as Ruby danced along to the beat.

"I love robots!" Ruby cried as she continued dancing. Yang took possession of Crue's scroll, checking the music.

…

Crue was finding it very difficult to wash his ears and not slip in the shower from how rapidly his foot was tapping on the slippery base. "It. Feels. Good-Bad." Crue was certain that if he had a tail, it would be wagging wildly.

"Fuck. Ing. Species. Changing." Crue eventually decided that he had cleaned his ears enough, and ducked his head under the warm running water to wash away the suds. "Do I need to use separate ear cleaners." Crue wondered as he exited the shower, drying his body before bringing the towel up to his face, and pausing.

"Ah, the age old question asked by every man." Crue said aloud as he stared at the towel. "Did I just use this same piece of towel that I'm about to dry my face with to dry my balls." Crue flipped the towel over for good measure and continued drying off.

Once satisfied, he tied it round his waist and exited the bathroom. Only to stop with his hand on the doorknob to stare in confusion at the sight before him. Every member of team RWBY was dancing to a song being played on Crue's scroll.

Crue backed into the bathroom and closed the door. "That, is real, right?" Crue opened the door once more, and saw that they were still dancing to 'Uptown Funk'. " _Well. I know who gave them the dance moves."_ Crue thought, feeling a tad melancholy from seeing them dance.

As Crue sidled along out of the way to his dresser, he felt a hand grab onto his arm, and drag him into the dance. "Come on Crue!" Yang exclaimed, swinging him around. "Dance with us!" Crue was desperately holding onto his towel with the other hand, trying to preserve Ruby's innocence.

"Yang! Towel! Ruby!" Crue tried to free himself from the blondes grasp, but found that it was nigh impossible. Eventually, after some help from the others, Crue managed to break out of Yang's hold. He rubbed his wrist slightly and made his way to where his dresser was, opening it and getting out his underwear and trousers. He re-entered the bathroom, and exited a short while later, holding the towel in his hand with his legs now covered.

He dressed himself properly and grabbed his scroll, stopping the music, causing groans from the girls. "Hey my music, my battery, my rules." Crue joked as he pocketed the device. Ruby and Yang stuck out their tongues, while Weiss and Blake shook their heads slightly.

The team dispersed, Yang taking out her own scroll and leaning back on her chair, playing some game or other. Weiss went to a desk and began scribbling away, whereas Blake took out a black notebook, and flipped through the contents.

Crue saw her face contort into a scowl as she turned a page. He was about to comment on it, when Ruby pipped up. "Hey! Team JNPR is in the library. Let's go hang out with them." The leader said as she rummaged through her drawers for something.

She took out a large cardboard box with a picture of the map of Remnant printed on it. The box looked rather worn, but the title could still be made out. "Remnant: The Game."Crue muttered softly, before smacking his forehead.

This action took the others by surprise. "Crue? What's wrong?" Ruby said, lowering the box she holding.

Crue sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I lost the game."

"DAMNIT!" Yang shouted, hands clutching her hair in anger. The other three all looked at her oddly, except for Crue, who wore a sheepish smile. "CRUE! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW LONG I'VE GONE WITHOUT LOSING!" Yang shouted at the wolf.

"Uhhhh." Crue let out, before rapidly throwing the door to the dorm open and sprinting to the library.

"OH NO YOU DON'T!" Yang called after him, skidding around the frame and running in the same direction. The remainder of team RWBY all turned to each other.

"Do you think Crue will still be alive when we get to the library?" Ruby asked. Weiss shrugged, a strange gesture for the heiress to be making. Blake said nothing, mind far away from the walls of her dorm room.

"Let's go make sure Yang hasn't broken anything. Bones or property." Weiss stated, exiting the room. Ruby followed after her, but popper her head back into the room for a moment.

"Blake." She called, rousing the Faunus from her thoughts. "You coming?"

"Yes. Sorry." She followed after her leader, trying to leave her thoughts in the room. It didn't work.

…

They found Yang sitting alone at a table with a scowl on her face, fingers drumming out a rhythm and Crue nowhere to be seen, which raised a few flags. "Yang…" Ruby began, watching her lilac eyed sister warily. Yang said nothing, instead pointing a finger to the top of a bookshelf, where an arm clad in a white dress shirt could be seen hanging off the top, soft breathing coming from close by.

"He ran up there and told us to tell her regrets nothing." Jaune called to the group from JNPR's table. Jaune had a comic book hidden inside a school book, Nora was resting on Ren's book, tome would be a better word for it though, Ren and Pyrrha appearing to be the only ones actually studying.

With no further questions, Ruby set up her board game and began playing with her team. For a while, the only sounds that could be heard were the game being played and Nora's occasional snoring. Then, a new sound made it's way onto the scene.

"Sup losers." A blonde monkey Faunus with an open shirt greeted the group, holding up a peace sign.

"Hey Sun." Ruby greeted amiably.

"Ruby. Yang. Blake. Ice Queen." Sun greeted the team in turn, ignoring Weiss' complaints about the name. "I never got the chance to formally introduce you to my old friend." Sun explained, although judging from his appearance, 'formal' was not in his vocabulary.

"Uh, aren't libraries for reading?" The blue haired boy asked hesitantly.

"THANK YOU!" Ren exclaimed, followed by two voices. One of them being an awakened Nora who shouted "PANCAKES!", and the other being a much less pleasant word.

"SHIT!" Crue exclaimed as he fell from the top of bookshelf, landing with a belly flop onto the hardwood floor. Everyone winced audibly as Crue struggled to get onto all fours. "That's gonna hurt in the morning." He muttered, coughing up spit.

He grasped the shelving to help him stand properly, before turning around and seeing the two new additions to the group. "I'm sure you guys are real cool, but I just fell like twenty feet, so I'm going to go lie down now."

Crue hobbled away from the two teams, occasionally muttering the words 'ow', 'ouch', and 'shitbiscuit'. "Uhh. Who was that?" Sun asked the team.

"Crue." Yang told him. "New guy. He's alright. If not a pain in the ass." She muttered the last part.

"So he's a Faunus too." Sun mused, eyebrows momentarily forming a small frown. "Oh." He elbowed the boy next to him. "Introduce yourself dude."

"Right, right, sorry." He excused. "I'm Neptune."

…

Crue felt as he hadn't slept for less than a minute when he was rudely awoken again, this time by Weiss shouting: "WHAT IS WRONG!?".

Crue groaned quietly and tried to go back to sleep, but the noise continued on, not allowing him that privilege. "I just…" Crue recognised the voice of Blake. "I don't understand how everyone can be so calm."

"You're still thinking about Torchwick?" Ruby asked.

"Torchwick, the White Fang, all of it." Blake exasperated. "Something big is happening and nobody is doing anything about it."

"Ozpin told us not to worry." Yang tried to comfort her. "Between the police and the Huntsman, I'm sure they can handle it."

"Well I'm not!" Blake rebuttled, causing Crue to groan a little louder, still hazy from just waking up. "They don't know the White Fang like I do." Crue's eyes widened immensely under his sunglasses, his mind being in such a drowsy state that he forgot he already knew this information.

"WAIT WHAT!?" Crue shouted, head appearing from underneath Weiss' bed, causing all other occupants of the room to scream, Weiss having such a shock she leaped into Ruby's arms. Once Crue got a look at the, look, on Blake's face, everything came back to him.

Crue slowly extracted himself from under the bed and stared at Blake. "Blake." Crue began, hearing the raven haired girl gulp audibly. "Were you a part of the White Fang?" He asked. The rest of the team glanced between the two Faunus rapidly.

Blake closed her eyes, and nodded. "'Were' as in, you're not a part anymore?" Blake hesitantly opened her eyes, and nodded once more. "Then it doesn't matter." Then, Crue did something that surprised everyone. He hugged Blake. What was even more surprising was that Blake hugged back.

Crue broke the hug and stepped away from Blake, before clapping his hands together. "Alright! So! Evil organisation based on overthrowing humanity, criminal mastermind, anything else I'm missing?" He noticed them all looking at each other apprehensively. "Look, I'm helping you. Alright? No questions. Let's kick some terrorist butt."

Weiss seemed to have the answer ready for him. "Alright, look. Between blowing up night clubs, stopping thieves, fighting for freedom and slaughtering Grimm, I'm sure the four of you think you're more than ready to take down these Ne'er-do-wells."

"Uh, who?" Ruby asked.

"Bad guys." Crue whispered into her ears, causing her to nod appreciatively.

"But let me once again be the voice of reason." Weiss continued. "We're students. We're not ready to handle this sort of situation." Ruby tried to argue the point, Weiss was making, only for her to repeat what she had just said at a louder volume. "We're not ready!"

"And we may never be ready!" Blake countered. "Our enemies aren't just gonna sit around and wait for graduation day. They're out there, somewhere, planning their next move, and none of us know what it is."

Crue's fist clenched tightly at that, his nails digging into his palm. "But it's coming. Whether we're ready, or not."

"Ok." Ruby started, raising both her hands. She took a deep breath and began speaking. "Allinfavourofbecomingtheyoungesthuntresses" "Eh-hem" "andhuntsman" "Thank you." "TosinglehandedlybringdownacorruptorganisationconspiringagainstthekingdomofVale." Ruby took a breath. "Say aye."

"Yes!" Yang cried, bringing her fist down in a show of joy. "I love it when you're feisty." She pointed to Blake. Crue slapped his hand against his face and sighed.

"Well, I suppose it could be fun." Weiss decided.

"None of you said 'aye'." Ruby complained.

"Aye." Crue said, smirking at Ruby who smiled widely.

"Alright then, we're in this together." Blake said, smiling at the friends that surrounded her.

"Let's hatch a plan!" Ruby exclaimed, followed by an agreement by her sister, before her eyes shrunk. "Guuuh. I left my board game in the library."

"We're doomed." Weiss said, resting her knuckles against her forehead. Before Ruby could rush out the door and retrieve her game, Crue grabbed the back of her cloak.

"I'll get it. Don't worry. You guys stay here and figure out what to do." Crue instructed the girls as he set Ruby back down and made for the door. "I'll be back before you know it." He smiled at them as he closed the door.

The moment he turned around, he felt something bump against him and fall backwards. "Ah! Careful where you're…" He trailed off as he saw who he had knocked down. Blood red eyes stared back up at him, unable to see his own due to his glasses.

"Oh, I recognise you." Crue said as he extended a hand. "You were at the bookstore." The dark skinned girls face morphed into a scowl for half a second, before turning back into a forced smile. The girl took Crue's hand, obviously displeased at having to require help.

"Yeah. You flew through the window. Hard to not remember that." She lightly dusted her black chequered skirt. "I never actually got your name now that I think about it."

"Name's Crue." He said shortly, lightly nodding his head towards Emerald. "You guys new or what?"

"Visiting from Haven, actually." A voice came from behind her. For a short moment, Crue's mind was filled with confusion. " _The fuck is Jessica Nigri doing here?"_

The voice was given a source, as Emerald stepped to side, revealing someone with raven hair, and amber eyes. Crue's mind went from one of confusion, to rage. " _Her._ _It's her fault Penny's dead. It's her fault Pyrrha's dead. It's. Her. Fault."_

"Oh." Crue said, his cold tone surprising the trio that stood before him. "You're here for the festival then. But I believe, that exchange students have their own dorms."

"I guess we just got turned around." A somewhat cocky voice said. Crue's instantly turned to face Mercury, who looked taken aback at the sudden movement.

"I guess." Crue replied, voice full of disbelief. "Your building is just east of here." Crue explained as Emerald and Mercury walked past him, leaving only him and Cinder having a silent staring contest. Crue would not falter under her gaze, as far as he was concerned she was just an animated body.

Cinder could tell that Crue was meeting her eyes under those glasses. And she didn't like that one bit. He stared back as Cinder tried to get him to falter. "Why thank you." Cinder said, voicing the statement in such a way that showed obvious signs of attempted seduction. "Maybe we'll see each other around."

" _I'm certain of it, bitch."_ Crue thought, making sure not to voice that particular sentence. "Maybe." Crue said as Cinder made to walk past him. Before she could completely, Crue brought a hand up and rested it on her shoulder, halting her movement.

Cinder looked appalled that someone would even dare to lay a finger on her, let alone a hand. "Try to stay out of trouble now, won't you Cinder?" Crue released Cinder's shoulder and marched forward, not turning around to see the look on Cinder's face, which was a mix of anger, horror, and curiosity.

"Oh. And by the way." Crue stopped halfway down the hall, and turned his head back so that he could see Cinder. He lowered his glasses ever so slightly, just so Cinder could see the barest hint of steely blue eyes.

"Welcome to Beacon."

* * *

 _Ooh, doesn't that last line just send jitters down your spine. As for the whole claws thing, he needed a weapon that no one knew he had, with his hurely being too recognisable. Maybe he'll meet up with one of the twins and something could happen. Who knows. I do. But I ain't saying anything._

 _So yeah, sorry about not uploading last week. This story is one I write when I have time, and as I have exams this week and next, won't exactly be able to do that very much. I'll still try to write when I can, but don't expect anything that huge. I will make up for the lack of content with the next chapter though. Promise._

 _So, now that I'm done here, I'll just leave you with my usual words. Let me know what you thought, and as always,_

 _Until next time._

 _-Friday_


	8. You Scream, I Scream

Crue had a problem. Technically two problems. Both originated form the same place, and a synonym for said problem(s) could be 'cerulean spheres', or 'ocean orbs', 'glaucous globes' and so on, so forth. But to put the problem bluntly, would be this.

Crue had blue balls. And he had it bad. The reason for this, or rather Crue's reasoning, was rather, reasonable, when you think about it.

" _I. Cannot. Masturbate. When. I share. A room. With four. GIRLS! And it doesn't fucking help that almost everyone here is a fucking supermodel!"_ Crue complained within his head as he limped to class, following behind Yang's behind. " _DAMMIT! HEAD OUT OF THE GUTTER!"_ Crue's eyes snapped upward, following the mane of blonde hair, making sure to stay at that level.

"You alright Wolfy?" Yang called over her shoulder, briefly checking her reflection in Crue's glasses.

"Peachy." Crue grunted, making sure to keep his eyes either closed or at her head. "Just got a, stiff leg." " _Considering how you made it bigger it really is a leg. WHY THE FUCK DID I JUST THINK THAT!?"_

Crue groaned as he followed Yang into Port's class, thanking a god he didn't believe in that Port's presence alone was the ultimate boner killer. " _It's bad enough I don't actually know if porn exists here."_ Crue thought to himself as he took down notes on a 'Queen Taijitu'.

" _And I'm not asking anyone if it is. Although, Jaune or Ren might know. Wouldn't that be a lovely conversation."_ Crue focused on his work, trying not to think of whether or not he could find pornographic material within Beacon.

" _Wait."_ He stopped writing, a terrifying, but slightly intriguing, thought came into his head. " _What is the age of consent here?"_ He stared at his paper, almost willing it to give him the answer instead of having to look it up on his scroll.

" _I know I'm legal. Well. As long as I don't do it with and adult, or someone below seventeen I am."_ He began counting on his fingers the possible outcomes of this. " _Either you're trying to set me up with one of the protagonists, or some random first year."_

Crue shook his head to get the idea of any possible suitors out of his head. " _I told you. No protagonists from Beacon."_ He began writing once more, leaning a little harder on his pen than was necessary.

Once the class ended, the homework being a description on what to do should you encounter a Queen Taijitu, Crue exited the room, meeting up with team JNPR, surprisingly. "Hey Crue." Jaune greeted as the Wolf Faunus caught up with them, the rest of the team greeting him similarly.

"Hey guys. So, what you think of the lesson?" He asked, trying to keep his mind off, anything.

"Very informative." Pyrrha said happily. "I'm certain that if any of us encounter a Queen Taijitu we will know exactly what to do." Her enthusiasm was not shared with her leader.

"Ugh. Just seeing a picture of one made me nervous. I don't know what I'm going to write for the homework." Jaune complained, causing Crue to chuckle.

"You can copy mine, I've already got my strategy down and on paper." Jaune's eyes sparkled at the proposition, before Pyrrha coughed audibly into her hand, reminding Jaune that he should not be copying.

"Seriously. It's right here." Crue reached into his pocket and took out a crumpled up piece of paper. He spread it out and showed it to Jaune, who laughed loudly at what was written on it.

"'Run'?" Ren commented. "That's your strategy?"

"Have you seen the size of that thing?" Crue exclaimed. "It's either that or 'Pray', and seeing as I don't believe in god that second ones worthless." He shrugged, continuing on and stuffing the paper back into his pocket.

"You shouldn't say something like that so lightly." Pyrrha warned him, emerald eyes frowning slightly. Crue glanced at the others, noticing they all had similar expressions.

"I'm guessing you are all religious?" He asked, receiving nods of confirmation. "Well, I have nothing against that. You can believe what you want. I believe, that there isn't anything to believe. That's all."

"Why don't you believe?" Jaune asked. "What made you stop believing?"

Crue's fist clenched inside his jacket pocket as he let out a shuddering breath. "I'm pretty sure I told all of you, and Ozpin, why I don't believe." He did not specifically state what he was referring to, but the others knew well enough what he meant.

"Sorry." Jaune apologised, causing Crue to sigh.

"Not your fault. Just, wound up." Crue defended. "Nothing any of you can help with, so don't try asking."

"Are you sure? I'm great at helping!" Nora cried, showing a wide smile. " _Hell no. Although, our ship name would probably be Fenrir-WHY AM I THINKING THAT!"_

"Nah, you're grand, trust me." Crue said as they entered the canteen, grabbing some food and sitting down near RWBY.

" _Actually, what would be any of our names?"_ Crue thought as he gazed at the people surrounding him. " _Ruby would probably be something obvious, like 'Little Red' or something. Weiss would be… 'Direwolf'?"_

" _Blake, not sure. Yang, 'Party Animal'."_ He turned his attention to team JNPR. " _Jaune. Don't really want to think about that but… 'Wolves Arc'? Pyrrha could be 'Romulus'. Or 'Remus', I always forget which one was the wolf one."_

" _I don't know enough about China or Mulan to try and think of one for Ren."_ Crue continued eating the rest of his food and joined in on the conversation currently going on before him.

"I'm telling you. If you hit it at the right angle you can run down a mountain!" Nora exclaimed, whacking her fist on the table. The action, as well as the conversation, caused Crue to choke on his meat as he tried to laugh.

His mouth was set into an unnerving smile as he grabbed at his throat. The table watched in a strange horror/fascination as Crue continued trying to clear his throat as he turned as blue as his eyes. They watched as he fell over backwards, hitting the ground with a thud that managed to dislodge the meat.

He sat back up and took a breath. "I agree with Nora." This caused instant argument, everyone stating how it would or would not work. Crue kept on voicing his own opinion, stating how even without aura if you ran at such a pace you would be able to keep the momentum.

However, during the playful argument, Crue's ears suddenly flicked in a direction, a strange feeling washing over him. Making it seem as though he was still looking at the teams, his eyes scanned the room under his glasses. He found exactly what it was that had caused him that feeling, and it also gave him another feeling. One of rage.

Cinder, Emerald and Mercury had entered the cafeteria, huddled in a small group of three, their presence alone causing students to give them a wide berth. He watched them silently from under his glasses as they tried to blend in, standing in line and ordering, sitting down in their own little group.

Crue could see their mouths moving, but could not make out any of the words, the hum of chatter over the cafeteria causing too much interference for his own advanced hearing to pick up. It made him angry that he could not hear their plans.

There could be so much more that they were doing behind the scenes than what was shown, and he promised that he would save everyone. He couldn't do that if he didn't know what they were up to.

"Um, Crue." A voice brought him out of his thoughts as he blinked and looked at the one who had called out to him. Ruby's silver eyes stared at his glasses, producing a strange infinite reflection.

"Yes Ruby?" He wondered.

"Uh, I know this is a super important argument, and you almost choked to death because of it, but you really shouldn't take it out on the silverware." Crue glanced down at his hands at Ruby's words, seeing what she said to be true.

Crue had accidentally bent both his knife and fork out of shape, the anger that he had felt towards the antagonists being channelled through the tough steel. "Better than on a person." Crue answered, laying his now crooked cutlery on the table and pushing his dish away slightly.

"Speaking of persons." Ruby smiled, while Weiss' eye twitched slightly at the grammar. "I made a new friend." The smile that she wore infected everyone, save one wolf.

"Oh?" Crue asked, trying to keep his voice steady. "Is it someone here for the tournament?"

"Yep!" Ruby answered. "Her name's Emerald." * _ **CRACK***_ "Crue! What did I say about silverware!?" Crue's knife was now completely snapped in half, the blade sticking into the wood.

"Not to bend them." He answered, causing Ruby to nod. "So I broke it instead."

Ruby looked like she was going to disapprove of his actions, but then nodded, approving of the fact he bent the rules. "So, why did you break it?" Ren asked quietly.

The rest of the table went quiet as they watched Crue pick up the handle of the knife. "I'm not sure." He answered. "Maybe something bad happened to me before, and I remembered it."

"Because of what?" Yang asked. "Emerald?" * _ **CRACK***_ "And there goes the fork."

"I guess so." Crue answered, the prongs of the fork piercing the wood. "Don't know what she could have done to me though. Or, anyone else with that name."

"Well, maybe we should just keep you away from knives when we introduce her." Ruby said happily, but warily at the same time.

" _Good idea. Just not why you think."_ Crue thought, imagining what he would do with a knife and Emerald in the same room. His eyes fell back on said green haired girl, watching as she said something in a hushed tone to Cinder.

From that point on, the conversation dwindled down until the bell rang, signalling their next class, which was Dust Preparation, Professor Peach conspicuously absent. It was then, when he was paired up with Velvet once more, that he remembered his provocative problem.

" _Technically, Velvet is a supporting character. So I could-NO!"_ Crue argued within his mind. It did not help that Velvet had decided to wear her regular combat uniform, which did not at all help Crue's predicament. " _Come on man, give into your instincts, go after that bunny butt._ " Crue refused to adhere to his base instincts, instead opting to question his thoughts. " _I did not just seriously think 'bunny butt'."_ Crue blanked.

"Crue? Are you alright?" Velvet asked. Crue twitched, eyes snapping open and looking at the Faunus, thankful that she didn't see due to his glasses.

"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine." He answered, instantly seeing Velvet's look of disbelief. "Just got a cramp in my leg." He bent his knee slightly, hoping that the lie would pass.

It did, and Velvet turned back to the Dust experiment. They were making a form of Dust that was supposed to act like mist, mixing Water, Ice, and Fire Dust into one. Crue helped out as much as he could, having not that much knowledge of Dust.

However as they worked, Crue's 'problem' flared up once more. Crue shifted his lower torso away from Velvet, trying to hide his shame. Unfortunately, this action caused Crue's body to bump of the table, shaking it and causing a vial of Dust to fall. Directly onto his crotch.

Crue let out a high pitched wine, as he desperately tried to cover his mouth from letting out another sound. Tears stung at the corners of his eyes, as he looked down and saw exactly what happened. Velvet let out an "Oh, dear…" As she too stared at Crue's crotch.

A thick layer of ice covered from his waist down to just above his knees. Slowly, and painfully, Crue stood up. The rest of the class had taken notice of his movement, and gasped when they saw what had happened.

"Uh, Crue." Yang began, wincing slightly as the boys head snapped to her. "Where, uh, where you going?"

Crue's face showed a look of disdain so intense, that even Weiss was scared, and slightly impressed. "To thaw out my dick, Yang. To thaw out, my dick." With that, Crue exited the room, slamming the door behind him, leaving a class of people awkwardly shuffling in their seats, and a very distressed Faunus who was now missing her partner.

Crue stalked the halls of Beacon, searching for a bathroom where he could melt the ice. Any student who found the sight funny, was instantly silenced by the murderous aura that was seeping out of Crue.

Eventually, Crue saw the tell-tale sign of a bathroom, the small blue stick figure standing out like a beacon in the dark. He entered it cautiously, suspicious that there was another vial of Ice Dust waiting to fall on him.

When no offending magical dust did, he entered the bathroom, checking under the stalls for anyone else. Luckily, no one was there. Crue turned away and considered his options. He could stand under the electric hand dryer, or he could run hot water over it. Neither options would be ideal if anyone walked in on him.

"Is there a closet in here or something?" Crue wondered, as he spied a door that wasn't the one he came in. He opened it, finding a variety of cleaning supplies. "I've never seen a caretaker in this building." Crue muttered as he picked up a sweeping brush.

"Suppose they'd be called janitors here actually." Crue sighed as he grabbed the handle of the broom and hoisted it high. "I can't believe I'm doing this willingly." He closed his eyes and tried to activate his aura, specifically around his crotch region.

Crue brought the broom down, smacking it hard against the ice. "SON OF A FUCK!" Crue exclaimed, grabbing the cracked ice after letting the broom fall from his hands. He fell to his knees and hissed in pain. "Admittedly. That was a terrible fucking idea."

Crue grabbed onto a sink and raised himself. "How did my life get to this point? Where I'm stuck in a bathroom with an iced dick." He asked rhetorically as he stared at the mirror. "Oh right. Some asshole of an Author decided to stick me here."

He turned the hot water tap on the sink, and cupped the water in his hands. "At least this will hurt less." Crue muttered as he dumped the water onto the ice. A small hissing sound could be heard, indicating that the ice was melting.

Crue sighed in relief, and continued this action until the ice was completely gone. "Great. Now it looks like I pissed myself." He grabbed some tissues from a dispenser and began wiping himself down. The action was interrupted by the sound of a door opening.

"Oh! There you are."Crue turned and saw Jaune, standing at the door. "The others were all wondering where you were."

"Well, I was trying to get rid of the ice. But now, I look worse." He gestured to the dampened stain on his uniforms black trousers. Jaune winced audibly.

"Yeah. But, don't worry. I came prepared." He chuckled, showing a plastic bag that he was holding. He tossed it to Crue, who looked inside.

Crue let out a small sigh. "Heh. Thanks Jaune." With those words, Crue went into one of the cubicles, and Jaune exited the bathroom, waiting outside for Crue.

A short while later, Crue met with Jaune, now dressed in his regular attire. "Thanks Jaune." Crue said, fist bumping him.

"No worries. But, you should probably go find Velvet. She was really upset about the whole thing." Jaune told him.

"Really?" Jaune nodded. "Shit. I need to go tell her I'm alright. Do you know where she is?" Crue asked the blonde.

Jaune shrugged. "Probably gone back to her room I guess." Crue nodded in thanks, heading back to his own dorm so that he could drop the bag back. When he entered the room, he did not find it as empty as he would have liked.

"CRUE!" The members of team RWBY shouted, before their leader tackled him into a hug at high speed, causing him to go flying out the door with a grunt. "Are you ok!?" Ruby all but yelled in his ears.

Crue covered his wolf ears in pain. "I'm fine, Ruby. I'm no longer a popsicle, so I'm fine."

"Oh. That's good then." Ruby said nonchalantly, getting up off of Crue and skipping over to her bed. Yang walked over and offered him a hand, which he took gratefully.

"Thanks." He muttered, standing up and dusting himself off.

"No worries." Yang waved. "So, where'd you go after becoming a dic-cicle."

"YANG!" Weiss objected, but stopped when Crue raised a hand to her.

"Do you really, want to know the answer to that question?" Crue asked Yang, taking off his glasses and staring her dead in the eye.

Yang gulped. "On second thought, no." With that, she quite rapidly made her way back to her bunk, where she hid under the covers.

"So what did you actually do?" Blake whispered, causing Weiss to lean in for the answer.

"Oh, just got some hot water and melted it off." He said, tossing his dirty clothes in the hamper.

"Then why did you act like that?" Weiss questioned.

Crue smirked at the heiress. "Because it was funny." The monochromatic pair shared a small smile, as they watched Crue fix himself up. "Now, I need to go find Velvet and make sure she's alright."

"Ooooh, the Wolf's chasing the Rabbit." Yang called from her place under her protective blankets.

"Racist and not funny!" Crue called back as he exited the room, sticking up a particular finger in the blonde's direction.

Crue huffed as the door closed behind him, not wanting to bother walking down the stairs to get outside. Instead, he thought of a better idea. He knocked on the door opposite RWBY's room, and found it opened within a few seconds.

"Crue!" Pyrrha said, surprised at the knocker. "Uh, what is up?" She tried too hard to be casual, giving the boy a snicker.

"Nothing Pyrrha don't worry, I was just wondering if I could borrow your window." Crue told the champion as she stepped aside, allowing Crue into the room.

"Our window?" A voice from inside the room questioned. Turning, Crue saw that Ren had been polishing his weapons up until that moment, looking up at Crue's strange request.

"What do you need our window for?" Nora asked, while bouncing on her bed. Crue chuckled as he made his way over to the window and threw it open.

"This." Crue said, as he jumped out the window. There was an instant clamouring from inside the room as its occupants scattered, dashing to the window to see what had become of Crue. What they saw, was not what they had expected.

Crue was staring up at them, standing parallel to the ground with his feet on the wall of the building. "What? You think I'd just randomly jump out the window without a plan?" He smirked, before sticking his tongue out at the trio. A childish act, but he felt it suited the situation.

"Is that your semblance?" Pyrrha asked, eyes on Crue's feet, where a faint navy glow could be seen.

"Yeah. Let's me stick to any surface basically. I could probably go a bit more into detail but, that's the basis of it." He saw the raised eyebrows of the people before him. He sighed lightly, but continued. "It allows me to change my centre of gravity so that I can decide what direction should be 'up' to me."

"What if someone holds onto you while you have it activated?" Ren asked, a hand on his chin, stroking it curiously. Crue shrugged, and then, Nora got a wide smile.

"One way to find out!" She yelled, as she too, jumped out the window. She landed on Crue's torso with a rough 'thwump'. Crue coughed in pain, but didn't fall. Nora, on the other hand, sat on Crue's torso and swung her legs over his arms.

"Feels like I'm sitting on a bench." She said, raising her hands up high and waving at Pyrrha and Ren. "He's pretty comfy. You should join us." She called up.

"That, doesn't seem like the best idea." Pyrrha called down.

"AGREED!" Crue shouted back. "REN! Please get your girlfriend off me!"

"She's not my-" "RENNY AND I AREN'T TOGETHER SILLY!" Nora laughed awkwardly. "I mean we're together, but not like, together-together. That'd be silly, silly!" Ren sighed, and let his palm hit his face.

"Nora." Crue said calmly.

"Yes Crue?"

"GET OFF!" Using all his force, Crue placed his hands on Nora's rear, ignoring her 'eep' and threw her skyward, where she was caught by Ren and Pyrrha. "Now, good day." Crue told them, fixing his tie as he turned around and walked down the side of the building.

When he reached the bottom, he hopped off and landed on the ground. " _This semblance has been very useful."_ He mused as he made his way over to the second year dorms. He recalled the way to CVFY's dorm, but wondered if he should make a special entrance.

Just as Crue was about to hop on the wall and knock on their window, he thought of two things. His 'problem', and his luck. Knowing his luck, Velvet and Coco would probably be in the middle of changing, and him bursting in on that would not be good for him or his problem.

Instead, he made the wise decision and walked through the door and up the elevator to Velvet's dorm. He stopped outside the room and knocked twice. There was a small shuffling, and a wall opened the door.

Correction. Yatsuhashi opened the door. "Oh. Hey Yatsuhashi. Velvet there?" Crue asked, trying to peer around the mass of muscle. Instead of answering, Yatsuhashi brought his foot back, the action not unnoticed by Crue. "What are you doing?"

His answer was not a pleasant one. Yatsuhashi's giant foot made contact with Crue's groin, causing a shriek that could possibly shatter glass. "You made Velvet upset." Was all Yatsuhashi said, before closing the door.

Crue's hands cradled his injured region, knees bent inward. "Why…" He whispered out, before falling sideways on the ground.

"CRUE!" A voice suddenly called. Managing to stick his head up enough to see who was calling, he noticed a pair of rabbit ears sprinting towards him.

"Oh. Hey Velvet." Crue wheezed out. "How are you?" He tried to be casual, leaning on his side and putting a hand on the side of his head, almost as if he had planned the whole thing. Unfortunately, Velvet didn't buy it.

"Did Yatsu do this to you?" Velvet asked seriously.

"Who? Yatsu? You mean the guy with the steel toed size a hundred boots?" He asked, and when Velvet nodded, he continued. "Nope. Haven't heard of him." The frown on Velvet's face made Crue feel a bit guilty. "He said I made you upset."

Velvets face softened. "Well, he does care a lot about me." She told Crue, kneeling before him. She saw Crue's moving eyebrows, and blushed fiercely. "No! Not like that. More like, a little sister caring."

Crue's eyes flashed momentarily, not that Velvet could see. He remembered how he acted around his own sisters, how much he cared for them, and how intimidating he would be to boys that were acting friendly around them.

"Fair point." Crue muttered, standing up as Velvet did the same. "But, back to the reason I came here." Crue leaned against the wall, taking off his glasses and meeting Velvet's eyes. "I heard you were upset about what happened."

"Oh." Velvet was surprised, apparently expecting something else. "Well, I feel like what happened was my fault because I forgot to put the lids on the vials." Her head, as well as her ears, drooped sadly.

"Wasn't your fault." Crue said shortly, causing Velvet's head to perk back up in confusion. "I'm the one who bumped the table. I'm just glad it fell on me and not you." Crue said honestly.

Velvet gained a small blush. "Well, thank you, Crue. I would have helped you with your problem if you had asked though." The mention of the word 'problem', caused Crue's mind to revert to his previous issue, before said issue was frozen.

"Don't worry about it." Crue said, putting his glasses back on. "I'd help you if it happened to you." " _WHY'D I SAY THAT!"_ He smiled awkwardly, Velvet returning a more sincere one.

"Thank you again, Crue." She smiled, before making a pout and rolling up her sleeves. "Now I'm going to go and tell Yatsuhashi not to treat friends like that." She took her scroll out and swiped it entering the room.

"Give 'im hell Bunbun!" Crue called after her, as he chuckled and left the building. Once outside the second year dorms, he sighed and walked carefully. "If I get hit there _one more time_ , I swear to God…" He growled, going back to his own room.

The sun was slowly setting as he made his way into the dorm building, not enough for it to be considered time for students to be in bed, but enough that people might be considering returning to their rooms. As Crue made his way back to RWBY's dorm, he got a sinking feeling that only grew in intensity with each step.

When he took out his scroll, he was expecting something big and heavy to hit him, but instead the room was normal. Which unnerved him more than anything. "Welcome back Wolfy." Yang waved lazily.

"Yeah, hey." Crue waved back, eyes scanning the room for anything unusual. When he didn't see anything, he relaxed. " _Guess everything's fine in this room."_ On cue, a loud but muffled yell sounded from the room across.

Everyone turned to look at the door to JNPR's room, which was soon opened and slammed shut by a scared looking Jaune. "Help me." He said, looking at the team across from him, blue eyes wide with fear. Before any of them could say anything, JNPR's door lurched open, sending Jaune flying forward. More specifically, toward Crue.

Jaune's head connected with Crue's 'head', causing the females in the room to wince. "Jaune…" Crue growled, before hearing a loud voice shout.

"THERE'S THE THEIF!" Nora Valkyrie shouted, Magnhild raised over her shoulder. She brought it down, preparing to hit Jaune like a golf ball. Jaune saw this coming, and scrambled out from under Crue's legs. Nora went through with the swing, not noticing her target missing.

Crue had felt a lot of pain in his life, but that swing of Magnhild topped that of the Yang incident. And of course, like the Yang incident, Crue let the pain out by swearing. "FUCK YE, YE BASTARD!" He yelled, falling to the ground and clutching his groin in pain.

"CRUE!" Several people cried, but Crue stood up immediately, despite the pain he was currently in. A curious thing about Crue is that, whenever he gets well and truly angry, his speech reverts to a different language.

"NÍL!" He shouted, causing all those to stop in their place. "FUCKING NÍL! TÁ MÉ GO RAIBH, DÓTHAIN! TÁ MÉ TUIRSEACH DE BHEITH BUALITE!" He paced around the room, arms thrown high into the air in exasperation. "TÁ MÉ AG DUL HIT SNA BÓD AN LÁ AR! NÍ MÓ! TÁ MÉ AG DUL GO DTI AN VALE AGUS CEANNACH MÉ AN CUP! AON DUINE AR STOP A CHUR ORM!"

With that, he exited the room, slamming the door with such force that the bunkbeds shook. Everyone in the room was silent, looking at each other awkwardly. The silence stayed, until Ruby spoke up.

"What language was that?" The red leader asked everyone. The others all looked at each other, seeing if anyone had an answer. When no one did, Ruby asked another question. "Ok, second question. What's going on with you two?" She gestured to Jaune and Nora.

Nora huffed at Jaune and raised her weapon. "He ate my pancakes." She glared at the blonde, who sought shelter behind Ruby.

"You didn't label them! We have a rule in the dorm! Label your food, so this stuff doesn't happen!" Jaune cried, voice cracking slightly as he peered over Ruby's shoulder.

"They were pancakes." Yang stated. "I'm pretty sure that's the only thing Nora eats."

"Not true." Nora said. "I eat syrup too."

"She's not the only one of our team who eats pancakes!" Jaune explained. "We all do! Ren and I make them." His blue eyes suddenly shone. "Nora! If I make you more pancakes, will you stop trying to kill me?"

Nora put a finger to her lip in deep concentration. "Please say no." A certain white haired heiress whispered, the request only noticed by her Faunus teammate, who shot her an unamused stare.

"Maybe." Nora finally said. "Depends on how well you make them." With those words, Jaune had bolted out the door, and instantly the smell of pancakes being baked assaulted their noses.

Nora giggled in glee and ran out of the room, leaving only its proper occupants in it. "Ok, third question." Ruby said, getting her teammates to look at her. "Where's Crue?"

…

Crue, was currently stalking the halls of Beacon, making his way towards the docking bay so he could get into Vale, and away from anywhere he could come into harm. As he marched towards his destination, he turned a corner, and found the only person who could make this night worse.

Cinder Fall had turned the corner at the same time, the two of them stopping barely in time to prevent a collision. Crue did not fail to notice her raised hand, a sign of preparedness should this be an actual attack.

When she realised who her 'attacker' was, a smug smile made its way onto her face. "Why, hello there, Crue." She said, her voice only causing Crue's anger to raise. Instead of replying, Crue continued on, the deepest of scowls etched on his face.

"Walking away, when a girl is trying to talk to you, not terribly pol-" Cinder did not get to finish that sentence, as Crue had spun around and punched the wall next to her head, causing her hair to flap gently, and her eyes to widen.

Crue removed his fist from the wall, leaving a deep imprint in it. He stood tall, using his height to tower over her. He raised a single finger up to her, his index, and glared at her. Cinder could tell he was staring at her, and she could feel the killing intent behind his actions.

What was worse was the small amount of fear she felt, before stamping it out with anger at herself for being scared. Cinder's eyes stared back at her, the reflection of Crue's glasses proving unnerving. After five long seconds, Crue finally spoke.

" **Don't.** " With that, Crue continued on down the hall, not even bothering to look back. Cinder watched as he stalked off, feeling a fire lighting inside her. How dare he, make her, _Cinder Fall_ , feel afraid?

"Wow." A voice came to Cinder's left. Mercury and Emerald had appeared from behind a different corner, obviously having witnessed the whole scene. "I'm surprised he isn't a pile of ash." Mercury commented, idly staring at his fingers.

The temperature surrounding them rose, indicating that Cinder was not in a mood to be trifled with. "Mercuruy." She said with venom, causing said boy to gulp nervously, and his partner to step away. "I am a lot of things. I am a ruthless and cold blooded killer. I am someone who can topple a nation in a night should I so feel like it. I am your boss."

She put extra emphasis on that last one. "But one thing that I am not. Is an idiot." As if proving her point, a dull 'thwack' echoed from the hall that Crue had walked down. The trio turned, and all took a step back to avoid the person flying towards him.

A tall teenager with auburn hair and large muscles, was now stuck in the same wall Crue had punched, a fist shaped dent in his armour. Cinder turned back to Mercury, and raised a singular eyebrow, daring him to say something.

Mercury obviously thought better, instead deciding to make his way back to the dorm room that they currently resided at.

"I'm sure you could have taken him." Emerald said happily to Cinder.

"Emerald."

"Yes Cinder?"

"Shut up."

…

Crue was currently walking the streets of Vale, a lot calmer now thanks to the Bullhead ride. " _Just make sure no one pisses me off. I don't want to have to hit a civilian."_ Crue thought as he searched for somewhere that sold armour.

He noticed a shop called 'Ware's 2 Wear'. " _Sounds like a place to buy a cup if I've ever heard one."_ Crue thought as he entered the shop, the cool air blowing over his ears. Before he could even look around to find what he was looking for, a stern voice called to him.

"Get out." Crue turned to see a tall man with dark brown hair glaring at him.

Crue turned to check behind him, finding no one. He turned back to the man and pointed a finger at himself. "Me?"

"Yes, you!" The man exclaimed. "I don't serve your kind here."

"My kind? The fuck are you-" Crue's ears were once more assaulted by the cold air. "You don't serve Faunus?" Crue said, taking a step towards the counter. The man visibly stiffened, not used to anyone actually standing up for themselves.

"N-No! I don't." The man stuttered, his resolve wavering with every step closer Crue took.

"And why is that?" Crue's eyes darted around the shop, checking for video cameras. He saw only one, but the counter was blocked slightly, causing Crue to smirk.

"Cause you're a bunch of freaks! And monsters!" The man shouted, before cowering as Crue slammed his hands down on the counter.

"Well now. That's not very nice is it?" He said through gritted teeth. "I'd hate for anyone to not be as, _understanding,_ as I am."

"I-Is that a threat?" The man squeaked.

"Oh, no, no, noo." Crue smiled. "This is a threat." Crue activated his claws, causing the man to press his back against the wall in terror.

"W-What are you going to do?" The man asked, a dark patch now forming on his trousers.

"Oh, I'm not going to do anything." Crue retracted the claws and stepped away from the counter. "But here's the best part." Crue leaned in slightly and whispered. "No one is going to believe you." With that, Crue walked out of the store, hearing the man suddenly scattering for the security tapes.

How disappointed he would be when he found out that Crue's hands on the counter were covered by a display case. Even though Crue had successfully gotten a racist to piss himself, he was still angry.

"Couldn't get a fucking cup. Fucking racist. Fucking Author. Fucking, uh, blueballs." Crue cursed everything he could think of, the streets of Vale now completely empty, and the shattered moon hanging high in the sky.

"I should probably ask someone about that." Crue said to himself as he continued on. As he walked, his ears flicked this way and that, listening to the sounds of a city in the night. However, one of these sounds was not like the other.

Four gruff male voices sounded out, and Crue was fairly certain that he heard the sound of woman whimpering as well. Instinct took over as Crue sped on, following the noise. He came to an alley, where he saw four burly figures apparently cornering someone.

"OI!" Crue shouted, causing the figures to jump as if they had been stung by bees. "The fuck are ye doin'?" When they saw Crue standing there, their expressions changed from shock to anger and disgust.

"Piss off ya freak!" One of them, a man with a beanie, cursed at Crue. "This ain't none of your business." The other three cried out in agreement. Unfortunately for them, Crue saw red the moment he said the word 'freak'.

"Not my business, eh?" Crue said as he took a step forward. He was wishing that he had brought his hurl with him, but he would have to make do without. He spied a discarded pipe laying on the pavement, causing him to smirk. "Guess I'll just have to make it my business."

With that, he slammed his foot down on the pipe, causing it to cartwheel into the air and be caught by Crue. "Now, I'm not sure who the fuck you think you are," He began, twirling the pipe akin to a cane. "But you should really be careful about who you insult."

He smiled and closed his eyes in satisfaction when he saw the group shift warily. "I mean, some of them might not be as nice as me, some of them might be a-" Crue was cut off by a sudden pain in his forehead. His eyes shot open as he felt something warm run down the side of his face.

Crue brought his hand up and rubbed at the sensation. Blood. They had made him bleed. Crue's eyes had locked on the one who caused it, the beanie wearing thug, who was wearing a smug smirk. However, the smirk soon vanished when he saw Crue's expression, not one of fear, or pain. But a smile of sadistic happiness that sent pure terror into their hearts.

"You know, I'm almost glad you did that." Crue said, stepping forward again. "Because **I** have been having, a really, shitty day." He cocked his head to the side, blood dripping from his wound onto the cold pavement. "And now, I get to take my anger out, on a couple of stupid thugs." His laugh reverberated against the walls of the alley, causing the thugs to huddle together.

" **NOW ISN'T THAT SOMETHING!** " Crue's voice had changed into a slightly deeper one, but just for that second. "But you didn't get to let me finish what I was going to say." He stepped forward as he brought the pipe up. "Some of them might not be as nice as me, some of them might be…"

" **A Monster.** "

 **[Monster – Skillet]**

Crue hurled the pipe at one of the thugs, causing a sickening cracking sound as his nose broke, and the pipe bounced off his face and arced back towards Crue. While the pipe was still in the air, one of the thugs ran forward.

The thug threw his fist towards Crue, who copied the action, but with a special difference. Just before the fists connected, Crue lowered his fist and activated his claws. The claws pierced the skin of his hand, showing that the thug did not possess aura, but Crue was in too much of a bloodlust state to care.

Before he could cry out in pain, Crue activated the claws on his other hand, raking them across the thug's chest. Crue released the thug's fist, and then drove it into its owner's mouth. The thug choked slightly, but was unable to stop Crue as he grabbed the side of his head and slammed it into the side of the alley wall.

The thug fell, and Crue turned his head rapidly to stare at the other two opponents, the action causing his glasses to go slightly askew. Because of the slanted position of the glasses, it gave the thugs full view of the crazy look in Crue's steely blue eyes.

The lesser thug stepped back, only to be grabbed by the jacket and thrown forward by the leader. Crue watched as he barrelled towards him, and raised his hand. The pipe from before fell into his outstretched palm, and Crue gripped it tight, and swung it horizontally, connecting it with the jaw of the attacker.

The thug spun slightly, before Crue gripped his arm and swung the pipe upwards against his elbow. The force of the blow cause the elbow to shatter, and his arm to bend in the wrong direction. Before he could scream, Crue hit his jaw once more with the pipe, sending teeth flying and bones breaking.

The man fell, leaving only the beanie wearing thug left. "D-Don't come any closer!" He stuttered out, whipping out a small knife.

Crue chuckled menacingly at the size of the thing. "Cute." He said, as Beanie charged at him. He swatted the blade away with ease, his claws slicing the man's hand. "Now, I want to ask you a question." Crue said as he pinned the man's arm against the wall, and pierced his hand with the pipe.

Beanie cried out in pain as he tried futilely to free his hand. Crue grabbed the man by the neck, shutting him up instantly. "Now." He said, not bothering to hide his smile. "What, is your favourite nursery rhyme?" The thug's eyes showed both confusion and fear. "Aww, don't have one?" Crue said in a fake sympathetic voice.

"Well, how about I share mine with you." He picked up the knife that the man had dropped. " **This** little piggy went to market." He stabbed the blade in the man's thumb, causing him to howl in pain. " **This.** Little piggy stayed at home." His index finger. " **This!** Little piggy had roast beef." His middle. " **THIS!** Little piggy had none." His ring finger.

By this point, the thug had become a blubbering mess of tears, mucus and blood. "But this little piggy. Oh, this little piggy…" Crue said as he trailed the knife up and down the man's pinky finger, ignoring his pleas to stop.

"Went, **WHEE! WHEE! WHEE!** " Crue had stabbed his finger thrice, each stab with more power than the last. "All, the way, **HOME!** " Crue ripped the pipe from the wall, causing the man to fall and cradle his bloodied hand. Crue noticed that the pipe was hollow, but had something inside it.

A maniacal grin split Crue's face as he extracted a part of the thug's hand from inside the pipe. He looked down to the thug, seeing that he was still staring at his hand. "Say 'ahhhh'." Crue smiled, causing the man to look up in confusion, before letting out a yell as Crue plunged his claws into his shoulder.

While his mouth was open, Crue shoved the piece of flesh into it. The man looked as though he was about to vomit, and probably would have had Crue not kept his jaw shut. "Now, now, now. Didn't your mother ever tell you it's impolite to waste food?" Tears streaked from the thugs eyes, creating a small pool on the ground.

"Now. You keep that in your gob, and go tell all your little friends, that if **any** of them try something like this again." He leaned in close and took of his glasses, showing the thug just how insane he currently looked. "You tell them that **The Wolf** will be paying a visit."

With that, Crue stood, tossing the man away as he ran out of the alley, violently emptying his stomach once he got far enough away from Crue. When there was silence, Crue stared down at his bloodied hands and claws.

" _This is what happens when I get angry. Although, that was a tad more violent than usual."_ He thought, remembering incidents in his old life where similar things happened. While not as gory as the previous event, the nearest hospital usually had several new patients.

It was then, that Crue remembered, hearing a woman. His head turned and stared down the alley, and he felt his heart stop. A short, buxom female strolled out from the shadows, hips sashaying from side to side. " _Oh shit."_

"… _Neo…"_ Crue could recognise the ice cream themed girl a mile away, but right now, he was a bit more focused on her curves than her clothes. Neo's eyes were pure white, and she looked upon Crue with a hunger and sadistic glee.

She trailed a finger up her body, starting from her navel, and resting for a moment between her breasts. She continued to sway her body as she walked towards Crue, a different head in charge at the moment.

While Crue knew she was on the opposite side, he also knew that she clearly wanted him. These conflicting opinions caused a stir in Crue's trousers. " _Ah, the return of the 'why boner'…"_ Neo came to a stop before Crue, reaching up and tracing her finger along the cut on his head, covering it with his blood.

She stared at Crue's eyes as she brought her bloodied finger down to her mouth, and sucked on it, licking the blood clean off. " _ **With a vengeance!**_ _"_ Crue smirked slightly, and reached out to cup her chin. He angled her so that their eyes met. "So." He stated. "You like the taste of me?"

Neo nodded her head, and trailed her fingers along Crue's chest. She trailed her fingers up until her hand ended up on the back of Crue's neck. Neo had to stand on the very tips of her toes to bring her face closer to Crue's.

Crue decided that it would be much easier if he were to bring his head down, so he did so. Their lips met, and Neo instantly shoved her tongue into Crue's mouth, who responded in kind, after a small amount of shock.

The two tongues wrestled each other, before eventually breaking their embrace for a gasp of air. Their eyes met, and they both gained identical, satisfied smirks. "Well, aren't you something." Crue said as he stared down at Neo, who gazed upon him with hungry eyes.

Neo batter her eyes and placed a hand against her surprisingly big bosom, as if to say ' _Who? Me?'_. Crue bent down slightly and smirked. "Yes. You." He pointed a bloody claw at her, not realising that he hadn't returned them to normal.

Neo didn't react negatively to the sharp object in her vicinity, rather she did something that was both expected, and unexpected. Her tongue darted out of her mouth, licking the side of the blade, tasting the blood on it. She swallowed, and made a slightly disgusted face.

"I'm guessing they tasted as bad as they looked." Crue said as he sheathed his claws. Neo nodded grimly, and looked back up to Crue. "Well, how about I give you something better to taste." He breathed into her ear, causing the petite girl to shiver.

Neo latched her arms around Crue's neck and stared into his eyes with a fierce intensity. Crue smirked as he stared back with equal ferocity. "Oh? You don't like that?" He said as he placed his hands on her hips, specifically the bare skin that her outfit showed off.

Neo shook her head, and kissed him once more, her tongue rapidly moving within his mouth. Crue fought back, his tongue overpowering Neo's and making its way into her own mouth, causing her to moan into him.

They broke apart once more, a string of saliva connecting them together. "As much as I would love to stay out here with you in the alley," Crue began, noticing Neo's face falling into an adorable, and slightly terrifying, pout. "I feel like we'd have much more fun somewhere where we could actually have fun."

He winked at Neo, who smirked widely. Instantly, Crue's body lurched backwards, and he felt himself fall towards the ground. Instead of hitting the cold pavement, he landed on something much softer. He realised that he was lying on a bed, inside a bright pink room, with a tiny psychopath straddling him.

"Neat trick." Crue said, causing Neo to bow her head slightly, all the while moving her hips up and down Crue's groin. Crue groaned lightly, but managed to keep a steady head. Well, as steady a head one could have after deciding to do it with a possible sadist.

"How about I show you one of mine?" He said rhetorically, causing Neo to stop in her movements, and cock her head to one side. That action gave Crue all the opportunity he needed, sitting up quickly and placing his mouth on her exposed neck.

Crue felt her shiver as he lightly bit down on the soft flesh. He let his tongue explore the pale skin, causing Neo a world of pleasure. Crue felt Neo's hand press against his chest, and so he let up, releasing her neck and letting the cool air run along it.

Neo pushed Crue back down forcefully, although it was more of a necessity rather than a show of dominance. Her eyes were slightly misted, and a small amount of drool could be seen at the corner of her mouth.

Neo's hands travelled down from Crue's chest to his crotch, where her actions had not gone unrewarded. A noticeable bulge stood out in Crue's trousers, Neo licking her lips as her hands rubbed off it.

" _Well."_ Crue thought as Neo ripped open his jeans, his rigid member springing free and standing tall. " _I did say no protagonists."_ Neo's eyes widened at the Crue's length, one of her dainty hands wrapping around it. "8. If you're wondering."

Neo smiled in glee as she let her tongue fall out of her mouth, and drag it up Crue's stiff rod. Crue shuddered in pleasure at the sensation, and his fists clenched as the petite girl sucked on the tip, tongue flicking around it in circles.

Crue groaned lightly as he sat up and rested his hand on Neo's head. Neo stopped her ministrations, looking up with a curious eyebrow. "Seems a bit unfair that I'm the only one enjoying this, huh?" He said with a smirk.

Neo's mouth slipped of Crue with an audible 'pop', as she smiled unnervingly at him. In one fluid motion, the ice cream themed girl preformed a handstand, kicked off her trousers and shoes, and landed with her privates directly on Crue's face.

"Before I start." Crue stated, causing Neo to frown slightly, but nodded, giving him permission. "One. _That,_ was impressive as fuck." Neo gave a small curtsey, inadvertently lowering herself even more onto Crue's mouth.

"And two, I feel like you've heard this phrase before but…" Crue trailed off as he gripped the girls thighs, spreading them apart so that he could see the glistening honeypot that belonged to the sadist. "I scream, you scream, we all scream for…"

Neo's eyes widened and she threw her head back in silent pleasure as Crue licked the tiny bud on her folds. Neo ground her hips against Crue's face, who responded by shoving his tongue deep into her depths. Neo's body contorted in ecstasy at the sensation of his tongue moving within her.

Crue slipped his tongue out momentarily, and lightly nibbled on her clit. Neo had a sharp intake of breath, before she hunched over and grabbed Crue's dirty blonde hair with her hands, trying to force him deeper into her.

Crue was happy to comply, his tongue now tracing circles around her nethers. Neo's hands gripped Crue's ears, causing the Faunus to shudder and freeze up for a moment. This did not go unnoticed by Neo, who smirked deviously.

Neo began rubbing her fingers along Crue's ears as he lapped at her lower lips. Crue groaned as Neo did the same. Crue's ignored arousal became almost painful, and he decided that, regardless as to whether or not she was actually mute, he would make Neo scream.

While Crue's ears were under assault, his tongue found it's way out of her slick passage, and up to the flushed bud. Neo bucked her hips on Crue's face, causing him to lightly bite down on the clit. Respite finally came for Crue when Neo lifted herself of his face, a string of mixed liquids stretching from Crue's mouth and Neo's folds.

Crue looked up from underneath Neo, meeting her pink and white eyes. "You taste pretty good too." He smirked. " _When the fuck did I become so suave?"_ Crue thought as Neo smirked and raised her back high in the air. She angled herself so that she was currently doing a handstand above Crue's head.

She lowered herself and bit down on Crue's lip, before slipping her tongue in. Crue groaned lightly, and returned the favour, lightly biting down on her lip. Neo moaned into his mouth and lowered herself so that she brushed off his erect member. Crue shuddered slightly, and Neo rubbed herself off his dick.

She began to unbutton Crue's waistcoat, and then his dress shirt. A light frown crossed her features as she continued undoing the buttons. Crue began to help, starting from the opposite direction. When the final button was undone, Neo threw open the cloth, revealing Crue's chiselled form.

Her eyes widened greedily at the sight, lowering herself down and running a tongue up from his abs to his throat, where she soon met his mouth once more. Crue sat up at the kiss, and placed his hand on Neo's cheek, moving it down so that he gripped her white jacket.

Neo took the hint, and broke the kiss so that Crue could take off the jacket. All that was left now was Neo's strange brown one piece. His eyebrows knit together in frustration for a short moment, before taking it off completely, exposing Neo's perky breasts to the world, and to Crue.

Crue looked up to her and smirked, Neo showing a similar expression. Crue blew gently, the air tickling her exposed breasts. Neo giggled lightly and moaned, grabbing the back of Crue's head and pushed him into her breasts. Crue responded by running his tongue all over her stiff nipples, causing Neo to moan and push harder.

Crue bit down lightly on the nipple, flicking it with his tongue. Neo moaned and lowered herself down, so that the she barely touched the tip of Crue's length. Crue inhaled sharply, and looked up to Neo. Her white eyes widened in pleasure as she slowly lowered herself onto Crue's shaft.

They both let out hisses of pleasure, as Crue placed his hands on her hips, and gently lowered her. Neo's head lolled back as she took inch upon inch of Crue's cock. Neo finally reach the hilt, both parties still for a moment in pure bliss.

Then, Crue began lightly thrusting into her, causing Neo's breasts to bounce enticingly. Neo let out a moan, and her hands danced around Crue's neck, gripping his skin. As Crue groaned out curses, he came to a realisation. Their current act of debauchery was rather, 'vanilla'. And Neapolitan, is equal parts vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry.

With a devious smirk, Crue stood upwards, Neo still impaled on his pole, the action driving it just a little bit deeper. Neo's tongue fell out of her mouth as she threw her head backwards in glee. She brought her head back, pink eyes staring at Crue's blue ones.

Crue leaned her against a wall, and began pounding away at the antagonist. Neo's mouth opened wide in a silent scream of pleasure, her nails digging into Crue's back, the action only making Crue go faster, and harder.

Crue's thrusts became faster, more erratic, and definitely more aggressive. All the while Neo's eyes had rolled skyward, staring at the ceiling in pure bliss. Soft indiscernible sounds escaped from Neo's mouth, as Crue closed in on his climax.

"Out?" Crue barely panted out, only to see a shake of Neo's head. "In?" Neo's head bobbed up and down rapidly, and not due to the current motions of her and Crue's hips. Crue, ever the gentleman, did not want to go against a psychopaths wishes, and so, increased his pace.

Noises of all sorts echoed through the pink room, from slaps to moans. As Crue neared his end, he put in a final last ditch effort. He slammed hard into Neo as he released his load. Neo threw her head back and screamed.

" _FUCK YES~!"_ Crue's dick popped out of Neo's soaking pussy, a small amount of white trailing out after it. Both of them panted heavily, before Crue realised something.

"So. You do speak?" He smirked, going against his will to chuckle. It was a good thing he did, seeing as the moment Neo regained her breath, her eyes darted up to Crue's, white with hunger and lust. She grabbed his navy tie, which for some reason he never took off, and stared deep into the Faunus' eyes.

"Yes." Neo said, her voice light. "I speak. Now you better make me _scream._ " She whispered the last word into Crue's animal ears, the sensation causing his member to slowly become rigid again. Crue eyes showed a similar emotion to Neo's, as he gripped the bottom of her legs.

"Well. If you insist." Crue spun Neo round, so that her back was facing him. "You showed off earlier, but that little show got me wondering." Crue whispered into Neo's ear, causing the girl to twinge. "Just how flexible are you?" Crue's member prodded the same hole as before, Neo reaching a hand down to align it properly.

Crue smirked, and linked his hands under Neo's leg, much to the petite girl's confusion. Crue said nothing, instead letting his actions speak for him as he brought his arms up and around Neo's head, so that her legs were now pointing towards the ceiling.

"Remember what I said earlier." Crue tickled Neo's ear. **"I scream."** He aligned himself at Neo's slick entrance. **"You scream."** He prodded her pussy gently, getting his bearings. **"We all scream for…"** Crue plunged his length into Neo, causing the girl to cry out in unadulterated pleasure.

Crue did not hold back this time, slightly marvelled at his sudden stamina. " _Fuck it. I'll blame it on Aura!"_ Crue thought as he searched the room for something in particular. He found what he was looking for, spinning around so that he, and Neo, faced it.

Neo's eyes stared forward, seeing herself being impaled by a full eight inches of Crue's length. Seeing herself being fucked, and feeling the sensation of it too, was almost enough to send Neo over the edge. Almost. But there was something missing.

That something was introduced rather soon afterwards, as Crue' had taken one of his hands of Neo's head, and rubbed his two fingers on the side of his head, where there was still some fresh blood. Crue waved his two fingers in front of Neo, who sniffed at the wondrous smell. Neo opened her mouth, and Crue inserted his fingers into the hole.

Neo licked her tongue around Crue's fingers, tasting the boy's blood. Her eyes misted over, and she felt herself nearing her own climax. " _Yes!"_ She began shouting, lightly biting down on Crue's fingers. " _Yes! Yes! Yes! YES!"_ Crue hammered into her, ready to fulfil her request.

" _FUCK ME!"_ She commanded. " _FUCK ME HARDER!"_ Crue was all too happy to oblige. Neo's screams became incoherent babbles as Crue went as hard and as fast as he physically could. Just before he finally bottomed out in her, he flipped her round once more, while still staying inside her.

Neo and Crue stared into each other's eyes, both of them filled with a raging lust. Crue lifted his hands so that they came to a rest around Neo's throat. Neo's eyes filled with glee at the sensation, as Crue lightly pressed down her neck.

Neo was not one to be upped however, as she lowered her head and bit down on Crue's neck, almost hard enough to draw blood. The mixed sensations, as well as the constant pounding, was enough to send both of them over the edge.

They both threw their heads back and screams of carnal pleasure erupted from their throats. They both came to a standstill, Crue's legs akin to that of jelly. Crue was able to take two steps closer to a pink four poster bed, before falling down on it, Neo clinging to his chest.

As the two lovers lay there panting, Crue could only think of one thing. "Whoever said 'Don't stick your dick in crazy' is missing out." At this, Neo's head rose from Crue's chest to look at him.

"You think I'm crazy?" Her voice was much different now that she wasn't filled with Crue's length. The voice wasn't an upset tone, rather, one of curiosity.

"You drank my blood." Crue stated. "Kind of a giveaway." Neo nodded her head in a 'fair enough' fashion, before lying her head back down.

"Your heart is going very fast." She commented idly, imagining all of the blood that was being pumped around his body.

"Can you blame me?" He joked. He shook his head. "Anyway, not like I can say much about being crazy." Crue nodded to his discarded shirt, where the mechanisms for his claws could be seen.

"That wasn't crazy. That was hot." Neo yawned. Crue understood that he should probably get back to Beacon, but after an activity like that, he wasn't even sure if he could make it out the door.

Crue lifted a slightly ruffled blanket over himself and Neo, and rested his head on a pillow. Neo noticed the action, and looked up in surprise. "You're staying?" She asked quietly.

"Yeah. What? You expected me to just fuck and run?" He chuckled. "I'd be a pretty big dick if I did that."

"Well, you do have one." Neo shrugged, a smirk playing on her features. Crue gained a similar smirk at the compliment.

"Oh." He remembered. "Are you gonna be ok? Conisidering I went, inside?" He nodded down to where the blanket showed off her shapely rear, and resisted the urge to grab it.

"Yeah." Neo said simply, snuggling up to Crue and resting her head in between the crook of his neck. "Can't get pregnant." Crue opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by Neo. "It was my own choice. I had my tubes tied."

"Why?" Crue couldn't help but ask. Neo shuffled deeper into Crue, murmuring into his neck.

"I didn't want to bring any kids into this way of life." Instinct took over as Crue placed his hand and Neo's back, and brought her closer to him.

" _Can't believe I'm comforting a sadist."_ Crue mused as Neo wrapped her arms around his neck. Crue noticed a light switch over to his side, and flicked it off. For Neo, the world was plunged into darkness, the only sensations being the softness of the blanket, and the warmth of Crue's body.

" _Oh yeah. Night vision."_ Crue remembered as the room stayed more or less the same. He shrugged it off and closed his eyes, letting sleep try and take him. " _Well. I guess I was right about fucking one of them. And it wasn't a protagonist. Fair play."_

Crue yawned softly as he began drifting off. When he thought about the small mass laying atop him, he could only think one thing.

" _This is going to make 'Painting The Town' a hell of a lot more convoluted than it needs to be."_

 _Fucking Finally! I finally get this damn chapter up, and I told you I would make up for the lack of chapters with this one! And I hope I delivered. Also, in case it isn't plainly obvious, I have never wrote a sex scene before. By the man gods of the various religions it was AWKWARD AS HELL! I could barely write two sentences without blushing like a damn school girl._

 _Also, for those wondering, Crue's Irish speak translates more or less to this:_

" _NO! FUCKING NO! I'VE HAD ENOUGH! I'M TIRED OF BEING HIT IN THE BALLS!" "I'VE BEEN HIT IN THE DICK ALL DAY! NO MORE! I'M GOING TO VALE AND I'M BUYING A CUP! NOBDOY TRY AND STOP ME!"_

 _Let's be honest, being hit in the dick by super powered teenagers would cause someone to revert to another tongue._

 _Anyway, what did you think of this ship names? Did you like them? Did you hate them? Can you think of better ones? Let me know._

 _Anyways, that's all for now. So, let me know what you thought, and as always…_

 _Until Next Time._

 _-Friday_


	9. A Major Hiccup

_Fair warning, this is a long one._

* * *

" _It is within the realm of possibilities, that I_ _ **may,**_ _have made something akin to, a mistake."_ Crue thought as he stared at the sight before him, which while attractive, was also rather terrifying.

Neopolitan had her arms outstretched over Crue, her multi-coloured hair falling over her shoulders as she lay on his chest, breathing softly. " _If I wake her up, she might kill me. If I try to sneak out, but she sees me doing that, she might kill me. By God am I fucked."_

As if sensing her 'prey' leaving, Neo shifted in the bed, head rising and eyes opening blearily. "Morning." Crue said, meeting her eyes. Neo's pink and brown eyes widened in fear momentarily, before recalling her actions the previous night.

She sighed in relief before replying. "Morn-" The statement was cut off by an adorable yawn, which surprised Crue. "Morning."

"For a sadist, you are fucking adorable." Crue stated with such conviction that it caused Neo to giggle, only furthering Crue's opinion.

"Sadist? Really?" Neo said with a coy smile.

"Don't even try to fucking deny it." Crue retorted back, a smile on his face too. Neo sat up, the blanket cascading off of her and exposing her to the world. And to Crue.

Crue's eyes widened slightly at the sight of Neo's breasts, forgetting that they had both gone to sleep nude. "Oh!" Neo said suddenly, before a grin came on her face. "Looks like someone's ready for round two."

Crue felt his length poking against Neo's soft rear, and was extremely tempted to take that offer. However, with a sigh he denied. "As much as I would absolutely love to make you scream again…" Crue said, brushing his hands lightly across Neo's toned stomach, causing her to blush lightly.

"I need to get back to my friends. They're probably worried sick or something." On cue, Crue's scroll started vibrating within its confines of his trousers, which were currently on the floor. Crue's eyes glanced from the trousers to back at Neo.

Neo sighed and pouted, before nodding and getting up off of Crue. "Fine. But if we ever meet again, you better be ready for another round." She winked at Crue and sauntered off through a different door. A short while later, the sound of running water could be heard.

Crue took the opportunity to get dressed, pulling on his underwear and trousers before picking up the scroll and answering. "Hello?" He asked as he pressed the scroll against his ear.

"Crue?" Came the confused voice of Jaune.

"Jaune?" Came Crue's equally confused voice.

"Where are you?" Jaune asked.

"I'm in Vale." Crue responded.

"No, I mean, on the screen. I can't see you." Jaune clarified. Crue held the scroll out in front of him, seeing Jaune's face on it. "That's better. What happened yesterday?"

"Uhh." Crue drawled out, looking around the room he currently resided in. "Could we maybe talk about this in person? Just you? Are you able to come into Vale?"

"Yeah. Classes start late today anyway." Jaune shrugged. "I'll meet you near the Bullhead docks alright?"

"Yeah, see you then." Crue said as he hung up the scroll.

"So that's your name." A voice behind Crue said. Crue turned around and instantly felt blood rush to two places. Before him stood Neo, a towel draped over her body, not at all doing its job of covering her up.

But what she said struck Crue. "Did we seriously do all of that last night, without knowing each other's names?" Crue asked with a blank face. Of course, he knew her name. But if she knew that, he would probably not be as alive as he currently is at the moment.

"I guess so." Neo smirked, but Crue could sense a sad motive behind the smile, as if this was unsurprising to her.

"Well, I'm gonna blame the heat of the moment for that." Crue said, turning around to face her. "I'm Crue." He smiled at her.

Neo looked surprised, before her expression softened. "Neo." She smiled back, then tossed Crue's shirt at him with a giggle. Crue caught it and put it on, noticing how it hid the accidental hickey that Neo had given him.

Neo smirked, noticing her little gift being hidden. Once Crue had gotten dressed completely, he turned to Neo to find her also dressed. Crue had a feeling that she had used her disguising semblance rather than actually bothering to get dressed.

"You know, I don't actually know how you brought me here. Which, while it should be concerning, I'm just hoping you'll just do the same thing as before." Crue looked at Neo, as she smiled and walked over to him.

She put a hand on his neck and pulled down, bringing him into a kiss, before flipping Crue backwards. "Gah!" Crue let out a cry of pain as he hit solid concrete. He looked up, finding himself in the same alleyway as the night before.

"Wait, is this the same one?" Crue's eyes fell on splotches of blood that more or less covered half of the alley. "Yeah, it's the same one. Now, where are my shades?" He looked around briefly, before feeling something fall into his lap.

Crue looked at the offending object, and saw himself staring back. He smiled as he picked up the glasses and turned his gaze upwards. He saw Neo peering over the edge of a roof, waving down at him with a strange smile.

He waved back and stood up, putting on his glasses. He dusted himself off, glancing back up once more to check if Neo had gone. When he saw nothing, his eyes fell on the sight before him. The gruesome reminder of what happened the previous night. Before the not so gruesome event anyway.

Crue stared at his hands, the blood long gone, and clenched them tightly. "What… Did I do?" He muttered as he passed by the stains. His gaze fell on the bloodied pipe, memories spilling forth of his actions with it.

"Jesus Christ. I was never, that bad. I mean, I broke a few bones, but never…" He shook his head and walked away from the scene, trying to leave his memories behind.

Unfortunately, they followed as he made his way back towards the Bullhead docks. " _Why did I lose control?"_ He stopped and stared in the window of a shop, the reflection reminding him of where he was. " _Right. Being forcibly sent to another dimension, where there are creatures that could kill you with a flick of their wrist, and humans just as dangerous."_

Crue frowned and turned away from the shop. " _That'd make anyone crazy. But, FUCK!"_ He punched a random wall, not feeling any pain due to his aura cushioning the blow, but grabbing the attention of some on lookers.

He removed his fist from the similarly shaped hole in the wall, and continued walking. " _I'm not going to go insane, just for YOUR FUCKING STORY!"_ He refrained from hitting another wall, instead digging his nails into his palms.

" _YOU WANT ME TO HURT PEOPLE! FINE! AS LONG AS THEY'RE THE BAD GUYS! I'M NEVER GOING TO HURT SOMEONE I CARE ABOUT! AND I WON'T KILL ANYONE!"_ Crue glared in another window as he stared at himself. His eyes travelled upwards to see his ears. They twitched once, and something inside of Crue sparked.

" _ **At least… Not as Crue Cullen**_ _."_ He realised that the shop he was glaring into was a clothing store. He didn't bother to read the name as he entered, and planned for a new alias.

A short while later, Crue exited the shop after paying the elderly shopkeep. In his hand he held two bags. One, a set of clothes for his mission tonight, where he knew the end result would be team RWBY fighting against Roman, and Neo.

In the other, a decision. " _This, is just a precaution."_ He promised himself as he gripped both bags in his hand. " _If everything goes well, I'll hopefully never even half to use this."_

Crue laughed scornfully, causing a few odd glances his way. " _Yeah, right. As if anything involving me would go right. Fuck. I have the helmet too don't I."_ Crue groaned as he brought a hand to his face. " _You planned this from the start, you fuck. Of course you did. Who just writes a story without having it thought out."_

Crue stopped outside the Bullhead docks, and sat down on a bench. He contemplated his actions earlier, and tried to think of some way he could possibly use this to his advantage. " _I don't think fucking Neo will have helped me in anyway. If anything it just made this more difficult."_

He sighed and slunk into the bench. " _This is all fucking Cinder's fault anyway. And yours. Fuck it! I'm blaming Salem too!"_ Crue growled into his hands as he tried to think of a way to make this work.

His thoughts were interrupted by a blur shooting out from the docks, and hunching over a trash can. " _Five guesses who that is."_ Crue sighed mentally as he heard the retching sounds coming from the blonde getting reacquainted with his lunch.

"How's your lunch taste?" Crue called over.

"Like barf." Came Jaune's response. The blonde in question shot back up immediately, realising who it was that called out to him. "Crue! Where the hell have you been!?"

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about. You're here alone right?" Crue asked.

"'Course. No one followed me. No one would want to follow me onto a Bullhead. Motion sickness comes in handy for once." Jaune let out a sad laugh, and sat down next to Crue. "So, what's up?"

Crue sighed and leaned back into the bench. "Well, two things happened last night. Both on opposite ends of the spectrum as to how good they are." Crue stated, Jaune nodding patiently and waiting for him to continue.

"I'm afraid, that my psyche may not be as intact as I would like it to be." Jaune's eyes widened, but he said nothing. "I was looking for some armour, and the owner of the shop I went into, was not the nicest of persons."

"He was a racist?" Jaune said instantly. Crue nodded grimly. "What did you do?"

Crue sighed once more and continued. "Threatened him. But I didn't actually hurt him. Just made him piss himself." Jaune chuckled slightly, the action causing Crue to do the same. "But, after that, something worse happened."

"Bunch o' thugs, harassing a girl, warned them to back off, one of them threw a rock at my head. Can't remember much properly after that. But there was a lot of blood." Crue's solemn voice reached Jaune's ears, and caused him to put a hand on his shoulder.

"Well, you said they were harassing a girl right?" Jaune asked, and continued on as Crue nodded. "Then they probably deserved it. You didn't kill any of them did you?"

"N-. No." Crue said, before speaking once more. "The fact I had to think about it probably wasn't a good thing, huh?"

Jaune chuckled awkwardly. "Guess not. So, what was on the other end of the goodness spectrum?" He asked. Crue gulped lightly, trying to think of a way to phrase his words properly.

"I may, have lost my virginity last night." Crue finally spoke. There was silence for a few moments, before Jaune spoke.

"SERIOUSLY!" He yelled, surprising Crue. "You've literally been here for a bit less than a month! How could you have maybe lost you- Wait what do you mean 'may have'?" Jaune stopped his rant, sending a confused look Crue's way.

Crue lightly rapped his knuckles on his head. "I might have before, I don't know. I don't remember." " _That's a lie. What would Hannah say?"_ Crue suddenly froze, not hearing what Jaune was saying as his mind was suddenly filled with emotions and memories.

" _HANNAH! OH GOD! NO! Hannah."_ Tears welled up in Crue's eyes, unnoticed by Jaune due to the sunglasses. " _I just cheated on my girlfriend. HOW THE FUCK COULD YOU MAKE ME DO THAT!?"_ Crue shouted within his mind. " _OR IS IT BECAUSE I'M NOT IN HER FUCKING DIMENSION ANYMORE IT DOESN'T COUNT!"_

" _IT STILL FUCKING DOES ASSHOLE! IT MIGHT BE DIFFERENT THEN IF I WAS IN SOME OTHER COUNTRY, BUT I STILL FUCKING CHEATED ON HER!"_ Crue's thoughts were broken when he felt someone grab his shoulder.

"Crue? Crue are you alright? You're shaking like a leaf dude." Jaune's words rang true, for Crue's entire body was shaking violently.

"I'm fine." Crue managed to get out. Jaune frowned, recognising the lie.

"You remembered something, didn't you?" Jaune stated. Crue's head fell as he nodded. "Was it, to do with, what happened last night." Crue nodded. "What was it?"

Crue took off his glasses and stared up at Jaune, his eyes welled up with tears, smiling sadly. "Jaune, I think I cheated on my girlfriend." " _I don't think so. I know so. AND I FUCKING HATE YOU!"_

Jaune looked shocked, then angry, then guilty, and then sympathetic. "You didn't remember. It's not your fault, and… I hate to ask this but, do you even know if she's alive?"

Crue's world came crashing down on him like a ton of bricks. " _Are they alive?"_ He recalled how he felt when he had first opened his gallery, and saw his friends. How had he not remembered her then? He probably had more pictures of her than anyone else.

Crue's hand darted to his pocket, feeling the bump of his scroll. " _I'm here. They're there. Am I the only person from Earth here? You probably didn't even fucking know about my friends. DID YOU!?"_ Crue took a shuddering breath, and removed his hand from its place on his jeans.

" _You brought me here. I doubt you're going to let me go back. For all I know they could be dead. But, that doesn't mean I'll just forget about them."_ Crue gripped Jaune's hand that was on his shoulder, looked up to him and met his eyes.

Crue nodded with fierce determination, prompting Jaune to smile and stand up, offering Crue a hand. Crue took it, and they both walked into the bullhead docks. " _Even if they are dead. Even if, even if my girlfriend is dead. I'm not going to forget about them."_ Crue thought as the two blondes boarded the bullhead.

" _I'm not."_

…

Crue watched as Jaune staggered out of the bullhead, hoping he wouldn't throw up. Again. Surprisingly, Crue rubbing Jaune's back had done a good enough job of keeping his lunch down. As he and Jaune stepped off the bullhead and into Beacons courtyard, Crue needed to ask Jaune something.

"Jaune." Crue stated, the boy turning around with a sickly 'Huh?'. "Can you, not, tell anyone about last night?" Crue asked, rubbing his arm slightly.

"About both?" Jaune asked. Crue nodded in confirmation. "Yeah. I can do that. Promise. An Arc never goes back on his word." Jaune winked.

Crue smiled, but the sentiment was immediately overturned by Jaune's face turning a sickly shade of green. "But they sometimes go back on their lunch." Jaune dashed over to a trash can, leaving Crue sighing and continuing walking.

"I'll talk to you later." Crue called back, receiving some rather distressing sounds in return. Crue shoved his hands in his pockets and walked into the halls of Beacon. His thoughts of his previous life weighed heavy on his mind, decisions, 'what-if's' and maybes floating through about.

" _I'm not in her world anymore. I'm probably never even going to be able to get back. I wonder if she thinks I'm dead."_ Crue slowed to a stop, leaning against a wall and staring downward. " _I wonder if they even noticed I was gone."_

Crue rubbed his eyes from under his glasses. " _God damnit. This is all your fault."_ He frowned and stared at the ceiling. " _No. No. You didn't make me fuck Neo… Well you better fucking not have. I cheated on my girlfriend, of my own damn accord."_

Crue dug his nails into his palm as his bitter thoughts continued. " _What the fuck am I supposed to say to her if I ever see her again? 'Oh, hey Hannah, I've been in another dimension for fuck knows how long, and I slept with a fucking psychopath. How was your day?'."_

Crue made his way back to the first year dorms, legs automatically carrying him towards RWBY's dorm. " _If I ever find out you have a face, I will punch it."_

He opened the door, and was immediately assaulted by yells. "CRUE!" Yang and Ruby tackled Crue to the ground, gripping him tightly in hugs, a small 'Why…' escaping the Faunus' lips.

"WHERE WERE YOU?!" Yang yelled at the boy, whose ears flattened down against his head at the sheer volume.

"I, uh, went for a walk." Crue tried. "And, did some things?"

"Things?" Weiss asked, stepping forward and lifting Yang and Ruby off Crue with Blakes help. "What things?"

"I took an enthusiastic walk through the city." Crue said, and noticed the blank looks he was being given. "And, made a racist piss himself?"

The other nodded, believing the statement due to Crue's actions against Cardin. "That sounds more likely. What are they?" Ruby asked, pointing at the bags in Crue's hands.

"They're for tonight. For the mission." Crue explained, causing Ruby to squeal slightly and try to peer into the bags.

"Oooh what did you get?" She asked, slightly ruffling the paper bag, before it was clamped shut by Crue.

"It's a surprise." Crue said, winking at Ruby. The action went unnoticed due to his glasses. Ruby pouted but nodded and turned away, going over to her dresser and grabbing some school supplies. Crue then noticed that they were all in uniform. "Uh, how long until class?"

Weiss took out her scroll almost automatically, and then shrieked. "WE'RE ALMOST LATE!" The platinum haired heiress dashed past Crue, causing the boy to spin in place. The following members of team RWBY all did the same, leaving Crue dazed and still spinning.

"Now I know how Jaune feels." Crue muttered as he fell onto his back. Groaning, Crue got up and tossed his bags beside his dresser, before grabbing a hardback and a pen, and rushing out after the girls.

…

" _Why was I in a rush again?"_ Crue thought as he took down notes from Ooblecks history class. Crue took of his glasses for a moment and rubbed his eyes. When he went to put them back however, he noticed three people in particular in the reflection.

" _The hell are they doing here?"_ Crue thought, staring at Cinder through the reflection. She did not seem to have noticed his accidental spying, as she was whispering low to Emerald and Mercury. Crue scowled and placed his sunglasses back on his head. " _They better not be plotting something. I need a way to know everything they're planning."_

"Mr. Cullen!" Crue's focus was suddenly on the green haired teacher in front of him. "Could you kindly give us the answer?" Crue felt the entirety of the classes eyes on him, including Cinder's burning gaze.

"Could you kindly repeat the question?" Crue asked uncertainly. A few people chuckled, but Oobleck nodded.

"Of course. I can understand why this question may be difficult for some." Oobleck cleared his throat and stared at Crue. "Why did you become a huntsman?"

" _I didn't."_ Was Crue's first thought. But, realising that that would not be an appropriate answer, he thought of another, more suitable one. "Because I want to protect the people I care about."

Oobleck nodded, and continued his lecture. "A fine reason indeed." Crue was fairly certain he heard a scoff a row or two behind him, courtesy of one Cinder Fall. "And it is for reasons such as these, that we have so many huntsman now. People can become a huntsman for any number of reasons. Fame. Money. The want for peace."

"Each of these are all fair reasons, but even still, nobility and kindness should be kept in high regard." A second light scoff, noticed by both Crue and Oobleck. "Ms. Fall." The teacher said, calling her out, much to Crue's pleasure. "Is there something you would like to add, or do you merely require a cough drop?"

A few laughs sounded through the room, and Crue felt the temperature increase a bit. "Nothing so trivial, I assure you." Cinder stated, and even though Crue could not see her properly, he could guess that she was putting on an air of sophistication. "I simply believe that honour and nobility have no place on the battlefield. Grimm care not for someone's reasoning, to them you are all just food."

Crue took notice of how she said 'you', and not 'we'. "Is that so?" Oobleck questioned, a frown on his features. "Well then please elaborate Ms. Fall, as to why you became a huntsman."

Crue could see the smug smile on Cinder's face, even though he couldn't actually see her. "Power, of course. People respect huntsman, and I wanted that." Crue grit his teeth and gripped the wooden table. " _Oh, how badly I want to smack that smirk off your face."_

"That's not a good reason." A quiet voice said. Crue turned to the voice, surprised to see Ruby looking back at Cinder, with a surprising fire in her eyes. "Huntsman shouldn't want to have power over normal people, they should just want to protect them."

Cinder glared at the young girl, who withered under the smouldering gaze and turned back around in her seat. "But that's just my opinion." She whispered. Crue reached over and gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder, before looking up to Cinder with the smuggest smirk he could muster.

Seeing her amber eyes widen and turn into a glare satisfied Crue, who turned back to Oobleck as he continued the lesson, the barest hint of a smile on his face.

A short while later, the class ended, Crue stopping for a moment to ask Oobleck a question. "Sir?" Crue asked the doctor, who looked surprised at the name.

"Usually people mistake my profession by calling me 'Professor', when in reality I am a Doctor. But never have I been called 'Sir'." Oobleck thought aloud with a curious look.

"Force of an unknown habit." Crue shrugged. " _Not my fault Irish secondary school hammered that into me."_ "But I had a question."

"Oh? A history question? Or was it to do with my own question to you earlier?" Crue nodded, causing Oobleck to take of his glasses and polish them. "I would like to think that I am very good at reading people Mr. Cullen. However, no matter how often I have tried, I simply could not get a beat on you."

Crue looked confused, but Oobleck continued. "I can tell the reasons for many others. Like young Ms. Rose. Her reasoning is similar to your own, but she also feels the need to because of her mother. Ms. Xiao Long, on a search for something, and using this as a head start."

"I could go on, but I'll spare you that long speech. And I suppose I must ask for your forgiveness, as I asked a personal question simply on a whim."

"It's fine sir. I mean, Doctor." Crue corrected. "Curiosity is a human thing." His ears wiggled slightly. "A Faunus thing too."

Oobleck smiled and nodded. "Yes, yes. I suppose you are correct. Thank you Mr. Cullen, you are dismissed." Crue nodded lightly, and turned to leave the room with a small smile. His expression darkened as he noticed that RWBY was still there, and they were talking to Cinder and her cronies.

"There a problem here?" Crue asked, standing a short distance away from the group, causing them all to look at him.

"No, no problem." Cinder said, voice as smooth as silk. Crue was unaffected, and just frowned at her. "We were simply discussing our reasons for becoming huntresses."

"And how you're reasoning isn't a good one?" Crue pressed, causing Cinder to frown and her eyes to brighten, a fire behind them.

"Crueeee." Ruby hissed. "We're behind that. It's fine." Crue nodded, but said nothing.

"We all have our opinions." Cinder said, a warning tone in her voice. "My opinion, for example, is that I think your reasoning is foolish and unobtainable. Impossible even. There's no way you could possibly hope save those you care about." Crue clenched his fist and stared hard at Cinder.

"You say it's foolish." Crue stated as he took a step towards Cinder, who tensed in response, though likely not from fear. "You say it's unobtainable." Another step. The rest of the group looked at each other nervously. "You say it's impossible."

"Are you a parrot Faunus or a Wolf Faunus. You really should make up your mind." Cinder insulted, though her voice betrayed the fact Crue's actions were having an effect.

Crue said nothing in response, instead stepping closer to Cinder once more. The two were so close that there was barely an inch separating their bodies from one another. "You say I can't do it. You know what I say?"

"No. Pray tell, _Crue_ , what do you say?" Cinder said sarcastically. Crue leaned down so that his head was directly parallel to hers.

" **Fucking watch me."**

The auras of both Cinder and Crue were flaring, so much so that both teams had to separate them before it got physical.

"Crue! What's the matter with you?!" Ruby asked once the entirety of her team had pried Crue away from Cinder, and Mercury and Emerald had managed to stop Cinder from incinerating Crue.

"Remember what happened a while ago, with the forks and Emerald?" Crue asked, once the group had let go of him.

"Where you broke two perfectly good pieces of silverware?" Weiss said, slight disappointment in her tone.

"Yeah. I've got a bad feeling about all three of them." Crue turned away from the group, staring at the retreating forms of Cinder, Emerald and Mercury.

"How come? They haven't done anything bad have they?" Ruby asked. _"Not that you know of."_ "And besides, you broke your forks and stuff before today." Crue nodded, but said nothing.

"It's in my gut. I don't know why I don't like them…" " _Bullshit."_ "I just do." The members of team RWBY looked at each other, but said nothing. The four of them turned away, heading in the direction of Port's classroom for their next class.

However, Crue stayed staring at Cinder's back. The raven haired woman roughly removed herself from Emerald and Mercury's grip, spitting some warning at them. After they did, Cinder turned back, assuming that Crue and RWBY would be well on their way.

Her surprise was easily noticeable, not expecting Crue to be staring her down from the end of the hallway. When he was sure Cinder was staring at him, Crue made a singular action. He pointed to fingers at his own eyes, and then at Cinder.

Cinder's increase in temperature was noticeable, even at the distance Crue was. It only increased in greatness when Crue flipped his hand round and raised his middle finger. Before Cinder could take any action, more than likely a violent one, Crue spun on his heel and followed after the girls, smirking slightly at his actions.

…

Cinder watched as Crue walked away from her, re-joining the group he had become so close to. "He will die painfully." She growled. Emerald and Mercury both glanced at each other, Mercury giving Emerald a slight nod, to which she responded with a frown. They played a quick game of rock-paper-scissors behind Cinder's back, which Emerald lost.

"He's only doing it to aggravate you. He obviously can't do anything physically." Emerald tried to calm Cinder down, but the statement did nothing.

"He knows something." Cinder seethed. "And I don't know how he knows. And I don't like not knowing something." Cinder turned back around, Emerald and Mercury both taking wide steps back in order not to be burnt alive.

"Contact Roman and his pet. Tell him we need to find out anything we can about this, problem." Cinder instructed the two, whichever one didn't want to be on her bad side.

Mercury grabbed his scroll instantly, a smug smirk on his face. Emerald made a noise akin to that of a person being strangled. "Can't believe you're into that psycho."

"Hey, the dick wants what the dick wants." Mercury said as he rapidly typed into his scroll. Cinder groaned. The children she had to put up with. The trio of ne'er-do-wells returned to their room in the exchange student's dorm.

When Cinder opened the door to the room, it required a certain amount of control to not scream and incinerate the person in the room. Neopolitan looked up at the sound of the door opening, and smiled a smug smile.

"I see you got our message." Cinder said calmly. Neo grimaced and her eyes passed over Mercury, who winked at her in a flirtatious manner. Neo looked as though she had stepped in something brown and sticky, and even that substance would have a better chance of getting with her than Mercury did.

"We need information about someone. Did Mercury tell you who?" The petite girl shook her head. "Of course he didn't." Cinder seethed, turning to the grey haired boy, who backed away slightly.

"I forgot to mention the jackass. I was too busy working my magic." Mercury said, leaning against the wall with a smug smile. Every female in the room rolled their eyes.

"Seeing as Mercury is so incompetent, I shall tell you who is currently throwing a wrench into our plans." Cinder faced the ice-cream themed girl, who looked bored at the current situation. "Crue Cullen."

Neo's eyes widened immeasurably, and Cinder took that as a bad sign. "You know him already?" She asked threateningly. Both Emerald and Mercury perked up at this, eyes wide and staring at Neo. Neo nodded hesitantly.

"How did you meet him? When? What do you know of him?" Cinder asked immediately. Neo tugged lightly at her collar, and took out her scroll. She typed for a short moment, before handing the scroll to Emerald, who was nearest to her.

"Yesterday. Was meant to rob a store, four assholes thought they'd try something with me. I was going to kill them, but he got to them first." The trio's eyes widened as the information was shared. The fact Neo grew a dreamy, if not creepy, smile did not help the sentence.

"He killed them?" Cinder asked cautiously. Neo shook her head, but still held the strange smile. "Then what did he do?" Cinder demanded. Neo calmly gestured for Emerald to return her scroll, and then leisurely took her time with typing.

When she handed it back to Emerald, the dark skinned girl took a quick read of it, and grimaced. "Well?" Cinder said impatiently.

"Um." Emerald hesitated. "She didn't go into specifics, but…" The girl blushed lightly and turned away from Cinder. "He did things to them that she, enjoyed." Cinder did not want to even being to think what the sadist could find enjoyable, so she asked said sadist another question.

"And what do you know of him?" She asked, growing more and more annoyed with every silent second. Granted she found Neopolitan to be the most tolerable of all those she worked with, but that was only because she didn't speak.

Neo shrugged, an action that enraged Cinder. "You mean to tell me you know _nothing_ about him?!" Neo nodded, then stopped. Her strange smile found its way back onto her face, as she took her two index fingers, placed them together, and then moved them apart.

"I don't understand." Cinder said, quite confused as to what that was meant to be. She was aware that Neo was mute, was this some kind of sign language?

"Oh…" Emerald said with a shocked look, her hand covering her mouth, and red covering her cheeks.

"That's bullshit!" Mercury cried, looking personally offended at the gesture. "After all we've been through?!" Cinder felt infuriated at being the only person in the room that did not understand what the distance between the two fingers meant.

"Can someone please explain what exactly that means?!" Cinder finally exclaimed, huffing in anger. The rest of the people in the room fell silent, eyes and mouths open in shock and horror.

"NOT IT!" Mercury suddenly cried, dashing from the room. Cinder watched as he fled, and turned back to Emerald and Neo with a scowl. The two shared a glance, and Neo pointed to her lips and shook her head.

At that point, Emerald gulped and stared at Cinder's bright amber eyes. "W-Well, what Neo is implying is that, Crue, has, a…" Emerald mumbled off into nothingness, only further enraging Cinder.

"A what?!" She ordered.

"A large phallus!" Emerald said trying to be as indirect as possible, then slapped her hands against her mouth. Cinder's eyes were still confused, and angry. So, Emerald took a breath. "Neo is saying that…"

…

" **WHAT!?"**

Crue's ears suddenly twitched from their place atop his head. "You guys hear something?" He asked the people next to him. Blake and Jaune both shook their heads, and returned to paying attention to Port's lecture. Or at least, pretending to pay attention.

Jaune was trying to ask Weiss out on a date, and failing miserably. Blake was reading a book, that Crue suspected was not suitable for Ruby. And Crue, Crue was trying to focus on the misson later.

" _I'm going with Blake to the White Fang meeting. Makes sense, I'm the only other Faunus here. Ruby and Weiss, tower. Oh shit, I'm going to have to stop Cinder there at some point amn't I."_ Crue groaned and wrote in his notebook.

In his notebook was the following:

Things to stop: V2: Painting the town. Dance Dance Infiltration. The Breach.  
V2.5: Unknown.  
V3: Fall. PvP. BoB. Heroes and Monsters. End of the Beginning.

Unknown amount of time between Volumes 2 and 3. Author could create something, or something could have actually happened. Will have to go by instinct.

Crue closed his book with a sigh, turning his faux attention back to Port. " _On the bright side, if anyone reads this, they won't have a fucking clue what I'm going on about."_ A bell rang somewhere, signalling the end of the lecture.

Port coughed, upset that he could not finish the tale. "Well, until next time." He waved and dismissed the class. As everyone filed out, Crue stopped for a moment, resting a hand on Jaune's shoulder as he lay face down on the desk.

"Dude. Why?" The simple question caused Jaune to sigh. "What do you see in her?"

"I don't know man, she's smart, and graceful and talented and I mean have you heard her sing, and she can be nice if you get to know her, just ask Ruby." Crue nodded in understanding. While he couldn't remember the exact wording, he was fairly certain Jaune said the same thing to Ren when he asked.

" _Or, 'will have asked'. Goddamn this shit is confusing."_ Crue thought for a moment. "What about her name?"

"Weiss? What about it?" Jaune asked, confused.

"No, I mean Schnee." Crue clarified.

"Oh." Jaune shrugged. "I didn't really think about it actually. I only learned her full name after the ceremony. And even then I still didn't really know what the name meant. Until she gave me a pamphlet and a lecture."

Crue nodded, patted him once on the back, and left the blonde to his thoughts. "You know, maybe there's a person that likes you that's closer than you think." Crue told Jaune, who looked up in confusion.

Crue said nothing more, instead opting to let Jaune figure out what that meant. " _Arkos will sail. I mean, Lancaster and White Knight are cute, but Arkos is the true ship."_ Crue thought as he made his way to team RWBY's dorm.

"AH JAYSUS FUCKIN' CHRIST ON A BIKE!" Was Crue's reaction as he opened the door and found each of the girls in various stages of undress. Crue instantly slapped his hands to his eyes as Ruby, Weiss and Blake all covered themselves, Weiss opting to let out a shrill scream.

Yang just shook her head. "Jeez, you guys need to chill. It was bound to happen eventually." She said as she walked over to Crue and threw an elbow round his shoulder. "I mean, three attractive girls, and only one guy? There was bound to be a slip up eventually."

"Three?" Was Crue's only question. Although he had a follow up question soon afterwards. "Please tell me you're not telling me this while naked." Yang 'pshaw'ed at the notion.

"Course I'm not naked." Crue sighed in relief. "I'm in my underwear." " _FUCKING HAREM PROTAG BULLSHIT!"_ Crue would have attempted to forcibly remove Yang from his presence, but knowing his own luck, he more than likely would have grabbed something bad.

So, Crue was left to try and blindly grab his own clothes and stumble into the bathroom. Once inside, Crue sighed in relief and locked the door, before taking out his clothes. " **Alright, time for The Wolf to make himself known.** "Crue said, with a slight echo to his voice.

…

"Ok, everyone got their codenames?" Ruby asked to her team. They all nodded, and looked over their outfits. Ruby was wearing a long-sleeved, light grey shirt with black belted cuffs. On top of that, was a black pinafore with stitching that resembled a corset. "I, am ' _Slayer'_."

Weiss scoffed lightly. "That's not a very reassuring name." Weiss herself was wearing a pure white dress with black edging and four black buttons. "I have gone with the codename: _'SnowPea'_."

"Of course you would go for something like that." Blake smirked. She was wearing a white v-neck shirt that zipped up and turned to black along the bottom. She wore pure black pants and a black belt that held them up.

"You called yourself ' _Intruder'_." Yang stated, causing Blake to blush lightly. Yang wore a collared cream top over a black shirt. Over the top she wore what seemed to be the top half of a leather jacket. She had a pair of crooked black belts with golden accents around her waist, similar to what Jaune wore actually.

"You're _'Hunter'_ , that's a bit obvious isn't it?" Weiss commented. The team began lightly bickering, before the sound of a door opening caught their attention. Crue had stepped out from the bathroom, in his mission attire.

"Wow Crue! You look really cool!" Ruby squealed from her place atop her bunk bed. Crue glanced down at his clothing, and felt inclined to agree. He wore a dark leather jacket, with a cream stripe running down the length of the arms. Under that he wore a deep blue shirt, the top two buttons left open showing off a black vest.

His trousers were made of denim, and were held up by a belt that's buckle could actually be removed and turned into a lighter. He wore the same shoes as his regular outfit. "Now all you need is a codename." Weiss smiled, clapping her two hands together.

"Codename?" Crue pondered, staring down at his appearance. " _I'd have gone with 'Wolf', if I wasn't using that for something else."_ Crue thought, feeling his jade green mask he bought pressing against his back. "How about, ' _Hound'_?"

" _I mean, Cú Chulainn means 'Culann's Hound'."_ Ruby put her finger to her lip for a moment in consideration. "Sound's good." Ruby cleared her throat and began talking. "Alright guys, today's the day. The investigation, begins!" She cried as she landed from her bunk, almost hitting Weiss.

"I'm glad to see we're taking this so seriously." The heiress commented.

"Hey! We've got a plan. That's… moderately serious." Yang rebutted.

"Right!" Ruby agreed. "Everyone remember their roles?"

"You and I will head to the CCT and check the Schnee records for any other Dust robberies, or inconsistencies." Weiss recounted perfectly. "Seeing as I'm in the family, it shouldn't be a problem."

"The White Fang has regular faction meetings to hand out orders and recruit new members." Blake said. "Myself and Crue…" "Yo." "Will get in, and hopefully find out what they're planning."

"I love exposition." Crue idly commented, taking of his sunglasses and wiping a smudge off them.

"I have an old friend on the shady side of town that typically knows everything going on in Vale." Yang smirked, crossing her arms. " _Oh yeah, Junior. Forgot about him."_ "Getting information out of him shouldn't be too hard."

Crue's legs twitched slightly, recalling what happened to Junior in Yang's debut. "Great! We'll meet up tonight near Yang to go over what we've found." Ruby said, satisfied. "Let's do this!"

"Yeah!" A different voice exclaimed. Crue acted on instinct, flipping Setanta around and pointing the barrel at the voice. The intruder's eyes widened as he stared at the business end of the hurley.

"Sun!" Blake exclaimed in shock. Crue blinked once, and stared down his sights. Sun Wukong was hanging upside down and staring in the window, specifically at Crue. "Crue it's alright, he's a friend."

Crue squinted once, and lowered his rifle. " _Of course I know that. But they don't know I know that. Fucking hell this is getting confusing."_ "How did you get up there?" Yang asked.

"Ah, it's easy I do it all the time." Sun waved off.

"You do what?" Weiss said, aghast.

"I climb trees all the time." Sun repeated, then swung around so that he landed in the dorm. "So, are we finally getting back at that Torchwick guy?"

"We," Blake said stepping forward. "Are going to investigate the situation. As a team." She tried to make it as obvious as possible that Sun was not needed.

"Sorry Sun, we don't want to get friends involved if we don't have to." Ruby comforted. Sun said nothing, but pointed a finger to Crue, wearing a look that said 'Oh really?'.

"He's got a point." Crue commented, nodding to Sun.

"Besides, that's dumb. You should always get friends involved." Sun dismissed. "That's why I brought Neptune." The monkey gestured behind him, prompting the girls to dash to the window and hang out of it totem pole style.

Crue joined them, seeing Neptune standing on a ledge near the window. "Sup." Neptune smirked.

"How did you even get up here?" Ruby asked.

"I have my ways." Neptune replied. "Serious though, can I come in. We're like, really high up right now." The girls all turned to Crue, who sighed and leapt from the window. Sun and Neptune both gasped in shock, but their shock turned to confusion as Crue began walking on the wall over to Neptune.

"Come over here you big baby." Crue said as he lifted Neptune, holding him bridal style so his back was parallel to the wall.

"This, makes no sense." Neptune said as Crue re-entered the dorm room and set the blue haired boy down. " _Tell me about it."_ Crue thought as he rolled his eyes.

"Uh, alright." Ruby thought, making up some new plans on the fly. "Sun, you can go with Blake and Crue." Sun nodded, but squinted his eyes lightly at Crue, who raised his hurley in a daring manner. "And Neptune, you can go with Yang since she doesn't have a partner."

" _Ha. Cockblocked."_ Crue laughed mentally as Ruby dragged Weiss out of the room and to the CCT. "So, what do we do now?" Neptune asked.

"I dunno." Yang shrugged. "Both our missions are later tonight." She walked over to the dresser and pulled out a box. "How about another game of Remnant?" She offered, shaking the games box.

"Pass." Blake and Crue said at the same time. The two glanced at each other in surprise, but said nothing.

"Alright then, Monkey boy and Bluey, come on." Yang instructed as she set up the game. Sun and Neptune looked at each other, shrugged, and joined Yang in setting up.

"I call Vacuo." Sun said as he grabbed the proper pieces. Blake and Crue watched as the trio began playing their game, before Blake turned to her fellow Faunus.

"Why didn't you want to play?" She asked.

Crue shrugged in response. "Don't know how. Didn't want to learn. You?"

"Board games aren't really my thing." Blake confessed, watching as the game went underway.

"Yeah, you're more of the 'it's not smut' kind of girl." Crue smirked at Blake's flushed face. Crue leaned back against the sill of the open window, as Blake retrieved a book from under her bed. Crue raised an eyebrow at her with a smirk, before she blushed and 'shh'd him.

There was quiet for a moment, the only sounds being those of the game being played, the complaints of the player, and the odd turning of a page from Blake. Suddenly, a new sound entered the mix.

" _Mirror, Mirror what's beh-"_ "What's up Weiss?" Yang asked, picking up her scroll and staring at the face on it.

"It's Ruby." Weiss' voice came through the speakers. "She's after running off, I need one of you to go fetch her."

"Why'd she run off?" Yang questioned.

"Penny showed up, believe it or no-" Weiss was instantly cut off by Crue jumping to his feet and exclaiming: "I'LL GO!"

"Crue, what are you- CRUE WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Blake's question turned more desperate as Crue leaped out the window.

"I'm ok!" He called back up to them as he sprinted down the wall. The remaining four in the dorm, as well as the one on scroll, wore looks of confusion.

"Did he seem, a bit enthusiastic, about that whole thing?" Neptune asked.

"Uh, yeah. What was that about?" Sun asked, scratching the back of his head.

"I don't know, but at least you got your wish Weiss." Yang said, turning back to her scroll. Weiss 'hmph'd and nodded, ending the call. "Rude." Yang muttered.

"He's never really rushed off to help someone before. Wait, would you call catching Velvet rushing?" Blake turned to Yang, an eyebrow raised.

"Nah, that just to stop her from falling. I can't think of a reason he'd rush off to help Ruby."

"Maybe he likes her?" Neptune tried, but the sudden flare of heat from Yang made him retract the statement.

"Crue doesn't like her, like that." Blake was quick to say. "He doesn't like any of us like that, actually. It was one of the first things he clarified." She said with a small chuckle.

"Shame really. He's got a nice bod." Yang joked, before hearing a cough to her side. Yang looked to see Sun gesturing to himself, more specifically his open chest. "Eh." She said, waving her hand, causing Sun's face and jaw to fall.

Blake's giggling drew his attention, and he looked to her with a frown. "Sorry Sun, she's right." Sun turned back and crossed his arms, grumbling under his breath. Something about 'competition'.

…

" _Penny. Penny. Penny."_ Crue repeated in his mind as he leapt over the rooftops of Vale. " _I can actually meet Penny. I can save her. I_ _ **will**_ _save her."_ Crue skidded to a stop as he saw a group of people staring at a set of robots.

" _I remember this."_ Crue thought as he searched the area for the tell-tale sign of ginger hair. "The Atlesian Paladin!" A voice suddenly exclaimed. Crue looked down to the demonstration, seeing a holographic image of a large mechatronic robot.

"Fucking hell! I'm meant to fight that!" Crue cursed to himself. His ears suddenly twitched, as he looked over the roof of the building he was currently on, and saw Ruby rushing across the road, shortly followed by two soldiers.

"Oh shit." Crue muttered, as he leaped on to the next building, going in the following the soldiers. He watched as one of them almost got run down by a car, only for it to stop at the last second and simply bump into him.

" _Fucking foreshadowing!"_ Crue cursed as he increased his pace. He heard the tumbling of boxes, and glanced down, seeing that Ruby had blocked off the Soldiers path with boxes aptly labelled 'Breakable Things'.

There was a stretch of alley now, an advantage Ruby used as she leapt onto the wall and began running on it. " _Huh. I think she picked that up off me."_ Using her semblance, Ruby bounded from the wall and grabbed hold of Penny.

She sped down the alley, Penny in her grasp. Crue followed after them at a much slower pace. Well, he was doing his best, but compared to the speed Ruby was going he may as well have been walking. He watched as Ruby tumbled to the ground, bouncing roughly and ending up on the road.

Crue's blood ran cold as he saw the approaching van. Crue ran as fast as he could, and leapt off the building intent on stopping the van. Someone else got to it before he could, however. Penny shoved Ruby out of the way, and put her two hands up.

Crue recognised the scene, and got angry at himself for forgetting that Penny would save Ruby. " _Goddamnit."_ Crue cursed, as he landed on the roof of the van, and kicked off it, landing on the opposite side of the street.

Luckily, no one had seen him, everyone too focused on the fact a young girl had just stop a van with her bare hands. "Penny?" Crue heard a voice say. His breath caught in his throat, as he backed away behind a sign, just out of Ruby's view.

"Penny come back!" Ruby called out, chasing after the redhead as she ran down an alley. Once the two were out of the picture, Crue turned his attention to the two guards that had just appeared on the scene.

"Why's she running away!?" Crue exclaimed, pointing his finger down the street, away from the current location. The two guards looked at Crue, then began following his directions, giving the Faunus a smirk.

With that done, Crue used his semblance and ran up the wall of the alley. Once there, he ran atop the buildings that would hopefully lead him to where Penny and Ruby were.

"Most girls were born, but I was made." Crue skid to a halt, looking down over the rooftop to see the two people he was looking for. "I'm the world's first synthetic person capable of generating an Aura. I'm not real." Penny continued, her expression lowering.

Ruby took her hands and folded them out, looking at the scratched skin, which revealed the cold metal underneath. "Of course you are." She told the android. "You think just because you've got nuts and bolts instead of squishy guts makes you any less real then me?"

Crue smiled as he leaned against the wall of the alley, close to the top. Granted, to him it was similar to lying down, considering his semblance, but that didn't change his statement. "She's right you know."

A pair of female screams echoed, and Crue suddenly felt something hit him, and cause him to fall. "PENNY WAIT! HE'S A FRIEND!" Ruby exclaimed. Crue groaned and sat up, realising he was in a bin.

"Ewwwwww." He groaned, picking a banana peel off of him. He looked up to see the frightened green eyes of Penny, and the concerned silver eyes of Ruby. "Hi. I'm Crue." He waved at Penny, whose expression of apprehension did not change.

"Uhm, Penny, you can trust Crue. Right?" Ruby herself said uncertainly.

Crue shrugged and smiled. "Sure. Anything for a friend. I even sent those guards in the wrong direction so you guys could have more time alone." Ruby blushed at the statement, however the implication sailed right over Penny's head.

"You, you said friend right? You're my friend? That means you won't tell anyone? Right?" Her voice was desperate, and Crue could honestly not see the difference between her and any human girl. Aside from the metal on her palms, that is.

"Course. I mean, you're just a girl to me. I don't care if you're a robot or not. You don't even act like one." Penny's eyes turned to confusion.

"I, um. You're both taking this extraordinarily well." Penny said sceptically.

"You're not like those things back there." Ruby told her. "You've got a heart." She said, poking her chest, causing a strange metal tapping sound. "And a soul. I can feel it."

"She's right again." Crue smiled. "Two for two." Ruby blushed lightly, but Penny turned to face Crue.

"I, do not understand, why you are fine with this. I am friends with Ruby, which makes sense. But you are a stranger, I cannot comprehend why you are not, as the term goes, freaking out." Penny pondered, Ruby looking at Crue in a similar fashion.

" _Because I already knew."_ "Simple. Can you think for yourself?" Crue questioned Penny, who, after a moment of shock, nodded. He gripped her hands tightly. "Can you feel that?" She nodded once more. "And you felt scared when I appeared, right?"

Penny nodded very rapidly at that question. "So you can feel emotions. That makes you just as human as I am."

"But, you are a Faunus." Penny corrected, causing Crue to blank and Ruby to snigger lightly.

"It's, an expression." He sighed, recalling a time when he was human. "Besides, not like I'd tell the secret of a friend to someone."

Penny's face lit up as she brought the two of them into a crushing hug. "OHH! Ruby! You are the best friend anyone could have!"

"Then why are you hugging me?!" Crue gasped out.

"Because you are a friend of the best friend anyone could have!" Penny replied, only furthering the tightness of the hug.

"I can see why your father would want to protect such a delicate flower." Ruby coughed out.

"Oh, he is very sweet." Penny said, releasing the two, Crue falling to the ground and breathing in lungful's of air. "He is the one who built me. I'm certain you'd like him very much."

"Wow." Ruby breathed. "He build you all by himself?"

"Well, almost." Penny smiled. "He had some help from Mr. Ironwood."

"The general?" Crue coughed.

"Wait, is that why those soldiers were after you?" Ruby deduced.

"They like to protect me too." Penny said with an optimistic tone.

"Pfft. They don't think you can protect yourself?" Ruby asked.

"They don't know if I'm ready yet." Penny confessed. "One day, it'll be my job to save the world."

Crue's hand clenched at the ground of the alley, his mind seeing Penny lying on a stadium field, motionless, scattered. " _I'm not letting that happen. I will make sure, she stays alive."_

"Penny what are you talking about? We're in a time of peace." Ruby said, bringing Crue back into the conversation.

"That's not what Mr. Ironwood says." Penny informed Ruby.

"She's half right." Crue grunted out. Ruby and Penny both looked at him, but before either could question him, a gruff voice sounded out.

"Check down here!" Everyone's expressions widened in fear.

"Well! I've got to go meet up with Blake. See you later!" Crue said as he leaped onto a nearby wall and ran up it. "And your secret's safe with me!" He called back as he disappeared from view.

" _And so is your life."_

…

" _God. Fucking. Hell. I need to work on my cardio."_ Crue thought as he panted, coming to a stop outside a warehouse. He stretched his limbs, and peeked around a corner. He saw an elderly man standing guard, welcoming in different kinds of Faunus.

" _Right place anyway."_ With that, Crue stealthily walked up the side of warehouse, seeing an open hatch on the top of the roof. " _Blake and Sun are already inside. I just need to get in without drawing any attention."_

Silently, he crept along the rooftop, opening the hatch and staring in. Hundreds of White Fang members were littering around, as well as some civilian Faunus. " _Jeez. Hope I don't have to fight all these guys."_ Crue thought as he dropped from the roof onto a rafter, creating barely more than a light tap.

He hunkered down and stared at the crowd before him, spotting out Blake and Sun easily. He took out his scroll, prepared to send them a message, when he noticed that he had an unread one. Curiosity took over, and he checked the message.

"Hey cutie ;)". Crue blanked and reread the message. It was from an unknown number, and Crue could only think of one person who would message that without being given his number.

"Neo?" He messaged back, and turned his attention back to the crowd, where a large, buff Faunus had begun to speak. " _Oh. It's Yatsuhashi's lookalike."_ He thought as he introduced, 'a very special comrade'.

"THANK YOU! THANK YOU!" A man with orange hair, green eyes and a bowler hat strutted out from behind the large black curtain. Roman Torchwick greeted his audience with vigour, despite the boo's he was receiving. "Please, hold your applause."

However, Crue was not focusing on Torchwick. Instead, his focus was on the petite, multi-coloured girl who walked out a short while after Roman. " _Fuck."_ Crue summed up the situation perfectly. He was still unnoticed by anyone, but now Neo was there, he had just messaged her, and Blake and Sun were also in the building.

" _Could this day get any worse?"_ He asked the sky. " _That was rhetorical by the way."_ His scroll buzzed in his pocket, and he grew a grimace as he stared at the ceiling. " _I fucking hate you."_ Crue took out his scroll and checked it, seeing that Neo had replied.

"How'd you know?"

"Lucky guess". Crue sent the message, and stared at the girl, as she took out her own scroll, smiled, and typed in a response.

"Cute. What are you up to anyway?" Crue squinted at the message, a sneaking suspicion that Cinder was behind this.

"Oh you know, this and that. Making racists piss themselves, pissing off this total bitch called Cinder. wbu?" He smirked as he pressed send, and then watched Neo's reaction.

She too smirked, more than likely at his insult to Cinder. "Oh you know. Girl stuff. Just watching a horror movie." Crue frowned, and debated something.

"Not nice to lie you know ;)". " _Fucking hell it's weird using emojiis."_ He hit send, and studied Neo. He noticed Neo's eyes widen, as she began rapidly typing.

"What do you mean?" Crue smirked as he typed his reply.

"Keep a secret?"

"Of course."

"Look up ;)"

Neo did as the message instructed, and almost dropped her scroll in surprise as she spotted Crue among the rafters, waving at her with a smug smile. Her mouth opened and closed in surprise, looking as though she might scream.

Before she did however, Crue noticed something out of the corner of his eye. Blake had reached behind her, obviously about to pull out her weapon. So, Crue did what he thought was suitable for the situation.

He blew a kiss at Neo, who looked possibly even more shocked, and as the gunshot rang, and the lights went out, he jumped up and out of the hatch. He heard the breaking of glass, and a male voice crying out.

"WHERE THE HELL IS CRUE!?" Followed by the sound of a wall exploding. Crue sprinted towards the sounds, leaping off the rooftop and landing on the mech. He felt tempted to respond, but if he did there was a possibility that Torchwick would here.

Crue suddenly felt his scroll vibrate, taking it out and answering immediately, he heard Blake's voice. "EVERYONE! IF YOU CAN HEAR ME WE NEED BACKUP-" "HEEEEEELP!" Sun's voice overshadowed Blake's by a mile.

"THEY GOT A ROBOT! AND IT'S BIG! REAL BIG! AND CRUE NEVER SHOWED UP!" Crue frowned and gripped his scroll.

"LOOK AT THE ROBOT YE FUCKIN' FOOL!" Crue yelled into the device. Sun and Blake both did so, eyes widening in surprise as they saw Crue riding the mech.

"TORCHWICK IS IN THE MECH! OR IT'S IN HIM! OR SOMETHING!" Sun continued yelling, as Crue whipped Setanta out and aimed the rifle straight down. He hammered on the trigger, bullet after bullet denting the machine.

Torchwick growled from inside the mech, and began spinning rapidly. Crue felt the need to hold on for dear life, before remembering that his Semblance would basically allow him to stick to the machine without worry.

His eyes widened however, as Torchwick piloted the mech onto a freeway. " _Ohhh, this isn't good."_ Blake and Sun leaped from car to car, avoiding Torchwick and his robot. Several cars were bumped out of the way, Crue turning around to make sure none of them exploded.

What he saw when he turned around, was Neptune Vasillas aiming his weapon at him. More specifically, the robot. "Oh shit." Crue muttered as he saw the volley of electric blasts heading towards him.

Acting on instinct, Crue jumped backwards, forgetting he was on a moving vehicle. He found himself pressed against the front of the mech, and could just barely see Torchwicks surprised expression through a small slot in the machine.

"Evening." Crue said as he turned Setanta into its sword form, and swung. Torchwick spun the robot, redirecting his attack so he swung at air. He heard someone cry out, and saw Sun jumping towards them.

He winced as Neptune and Sun collided mid-air, disappearing from his view. " _Yeesh. Wait. They go to get noodles. FUCK THEM!"_ Crue thought, his feelings for the two going from sympathy to anger in a snap.

His eyes returned to the road, looking forward and seeing Weiss jump down. "This is gonna hurt." Crue prepared himself for immense amounts of pain. And pain was what he received when Weiss turned the road to ice. The mech slipped, landing on the road and skidding, leaving its passenger behind as Crue was roughly thrown from it.

The mech fell from the freeway, leaving Crue on the icy ground, staring up at the sky and groaning. "This would be so much easier if he was on my side." He moaned, hand going to his head.

He suddenly shot up from his place on the ground, ignoring the headache the action just caused. "My side. That's it!" Crue stood up and looked over the bridge, seeing a fight going on below between Torchwick and team RWBY.

"Where's the bullhead?" Crue wondered, eyes searching for the vehicle that Roman would make his escape in. There was an explosion from down below, and Crue had to remind himself not to jump into the fray.

"They'll be fine. I just need to fix this." Crue thought as he watched the Paladin get shredded to pieces. "Fuuuuuck. It's now or never." Crue grabbed his folded up helmet from its place nestled between his shirt and his jacket.

"Goodbye Crue." The Faunus took a breath, and put on the helmet. " **Welcome, The Wolf.** " The sound of a motor whirring assaulted his ears. The Wolf glanced down to see a Bullhead beginning to take off.

"Maximum effort." Wolf said as he dropped from his place atop the freeway onto the top of the Bullhead. It began taking off, but for some reason his semblance wouldn't activate. "Don't do this to me now fucker."

Running out of options, Wolf activated his claws and sunk them into the metal of the Bullhead. They went clean through, popping out on the other side, unbeknownst to him. Roman sighed as he saw the claws.

"Kids these days. They just don't learn." He took out a cigar and lit it up. "Neo, be a dear and teach our stowaway a lesson." Neo smiled horrifically, and curtsied, before disappearing.

The Wolf heard a sound like shattering glass, and looked up to see Neopolitan staring at him with wide and deadly eyes. " _Oh shit. She doesn't recognise me."_ The Faunus realised as he had to duck under a swing from her umbrella.

"Ne-ghak!" Wolf tried to say something, but was stopped as he received a kick to the abdomen from the petite girl. The Wolf activated his claws, not in attempt to defend or attack, but in hopes Neo would recognise them.

His tactic didn't work. If anything, it just made the girl more deadly, seeing that her opponent now had a weapon. " _This did not work out in my favour."_ Wolf thought as he desperately dodged. Neo was enjoying the game of cat and mouse, the fact her prey seemed scared was definitely a bonus.

While Wolf was trying to think of a way out of the situation that did not end in him being skewered, Neo placed her foot on his leg and jumped off, so that she ended up at the front of the Bullhead. She smirked and flipped her umbrella behind her, before opening it.

It would appear that in the heat of the moment, Neo forgot exactly where the battle was taking place. She went flying forward, her eyes wide with fear. Just before she flew off the back of the Bullhead, a hand gripped her leg.

Neo turned to see the stowaway gripping both her and the Bullheads tail fin. "CLOSE THE DAMN UMBRELLA!" He roared at her as he held on. Neo blinked in surprise, but did as instructed. The parasol snapped shut, and the two went cartwheeling back onto the roof of the bullhead.

Wolf grunted as his back hit the cool metal of the transport. He groaned and open his eyes, seeing Neo straddling his hips, but not in the same way she had done earlier this morning. " _That's it!"_ He realised as Neo took her sword from the sheathe of the umbrella and raised it above her foe.

Before she could plunge it down, Wolf grabbed at his shirt and pulled it to the side, showing off his chest and neck. Neo froze at what she saw. Upon the intruders neck, was a dark purple bruise, one she remembered giving to a certain someone.

" _Crue?"_ She mouthed in shock.

"It's The Wolf now." He told her, propping himself up on his elbows. "Probably should have mentioned this earlier but," The Wolf stared deep into Neo's mismatched eyes, his own in full view as he had taken them off to put on the helmet. "I'm on your side."

Neo looked at him in surprise, and a small bit of relief. "But, Cinder hate's you?" The statement made Crue oddly proud.

"Good. Cause I'm on your side, not her side." Wolf told her. Neo's face turned into one of confusion. "I'll explain everything, once we're on the ground." He glanced to the side, seeing ruined buildings coming into view.

"Oh, Mountain Glenn huh. Nice hideout spot." " _Well, this is not surprising in the least."_ Wolf could see Neo biting her lip in worry. "Hey, it'll be fine. Just let me talk to Torchwick." Neo looked down at him, mixed emotions behind her eyes.

"Alright. But you owe me." Wolf sensed a hidden meaning behind those words, but said nothing.

"Fine. Can you, get off now?" He asked awkwardly. Neo noticed that she was still sitting on his hips, and felt inclined to not comply with that request.

"Neo, have you fixed our little problem." Came the voice of one Roman Torchwick. Wolf looked up at Neo, who sighed silently. She disappeared in a blink, and Wolf could here Torchwick conversing with her. "What do you mean 'not exactly'?"

Wolf sighed and looked around. He noticed how close they were to the ground, and leapt from the top of the bullhead to the shattered concrete below. The Wolf watched as the Bullhead descended, and waited patiently for its occupants to disembark.

As the vehicle touched down, the butterfly wing doors opened, revealing more than the two people Wolf had expected. A small amount of White Fang members were also on the Bullhead. And when they noticed the stranger, their weapons were instantly raised.

"Oh shit." Wolf muttered, as his presence drew the attention of the red haired criminal that he needed to talk to.

Roman's eyes widened slightly upon seeing the stowaway still alive. "I don't know how you managed to convince Neo not to kill you, but I'm not as easily swayed." He said as he stepped forward, discarding his almost finished cigar and placing the end of his cane on The Wolf's chest.

"And I have had, a really, bad day." With no prior warning, Roman pulled the trigger on his weapon, an explosion of red erupting from the end of his cane, sending Wolf flying back into wall. However, the wall was in such a state of disrepair, that he continued flying through it.

"You really couldn't have done that by yourself?" Roman sighed, turning to Neo. His expression turned to one of confusion at Neo's actions. Her hands were gripping the top of her scalp, clenching onto her multi-coloured hairs.

The expression soon changed however, to one of anger, directed at Roman. She made several gestures with her hands, most of which quite rude. "What do you mean I shouldn't have done that?" More gestures. "He was standing there, with his claws out. What did you want me to do?"

Neo didn't get to reply to that question, as a haunting sound began echoing through the abandoned city. " **Hahaha. Man. That almost tickled.** " Roman, Neo, and all the White Fang members turned their attention to the hole which Roman had shot the stranger through.

" **Really, Roman. Shooting me before I have a chance to speak. For shame.** " From the rubble of the collision, the stranger wearing a leather jacket and jade green helmet emerged, looking practically unscathed. " **If I was anyone else, I might have been killed by that.** "

Roman grit his teeth and gripped the handle on his cane. "So why are you still here? Why aren't you dead?" The stranger smiled beneath his helmet and strode towards Roman, each step without fear.

" **Didn't fucking feel like it.** " A laugh, echoed by the helmet, erupted from the man's lungs. Roman loosened the grip on his cane slightly.

"Well, you've certainly piqued my interest." He said, taking out another cigar. "So, what the hell are you doing here?" He asked as he brought his lighter to his lips, only to freeze as a hand gripped his arm so tightly it might break.

"Are you insane, or just stupid?" The helmeted man asked. Every White Fang grunt there began making neck cutting motions with their hands, even Neo was performing some warning gestures.

"What?" Roman asked, fierce anger dripping from the single syllable.

"You don't use a lighter to light a cigar." And like that, everyone's motions halted and were replaced with confused stares. Roman himself felt his rage lessen as the stranger released his hand and reached into his back pocket.

"You use a match." He said as he took out a box of matches, and struck one. "Preserves the flavour." He lit the cigar, covering the flame with his hand. Roman took a single breath, and let out a puff of smoke.

"You're right." He said quietly, staring at the cigar between his fingers. "Five words. I'll give you five words to figure out what to say so I don't kill you."

"What!?" "Four words."

The Wolf growled, but kept his mouth shut. For a short while, there was silence, aside from the impatient tapping of Romans foot. "I haven't got all day."

"Would you hold on? I'm trying to incorporate a swear." The man replied, going back into silence. Normally, Roman would have said his words were up. But he was curious to see where he was going with this.

"Alright, got it." The stranger said, clapping his hands together. He cleared his throat and stared at Roman.

"Cinder…" Roman's eyes widened slightly, at the knowledge of the name. "Is a cunt." A soft noise drew both males attention, as they turned to see Neo trying not to die from laughter. A few of the White Fang members were chuckling too, their knowledge of the employer making them like this new person.

"Alright. That's a statement I agree with. So what's your game?" Roman finally said.

Wolf sighed in relief, and continued speaking. "Ok so, I'm on your side." He said, pointing to Roman. "And I know, that's a bit of a controversial statement. But the point is, I'm on your side, not Cinder's."

Roman pondered the statement in his head for a moment. "And, how does that help me?" He asked.

"Simple." Wolf replied. "Let's be honest here, we all know what Cinder is going to do once she decides you aren't useful to her anymore." The grimace that crossed Roman's face confirmed this. "And I, am going to make sure that doesn't happen."

"How?" Roman kept the question short and sweet.

"Easy. Bye foiling her plans, but not yours." Wolf could see the slight confusion, and so he clarified. "Basically, if she has a plan, and it doesn't involve you…" He waited for Roman to nod. "That shit is not going to fly."

Roman smirked slightly, before asking another question. "Ok, why? Why do this for us?" Wolf instinctively glanced to Neo, but after meeting her eyes, his gaze returned to Roman.

"Because, I respect you." There was a noise of confusion from a few of the White Fang members, none of them obviously having any respect for the human.

"Elaborate." Roman said, suspicion laced in his voice.

"You know your place." Wolf said shortly, sending a slight scowl across Romans features. "By that, I mean that you know what you're doing when it comes to crimes." The scowl turned into a frown, but that was just his natural look.

"You steal the perfect amount. Too little, no name for yourself. Too much, maybe a huntsman or something comes after you. But you, you know just how much to steal so that you're known, but not a threat." Wolf finished this, stepping back and allowing Roman a moment to collect his thoughts.

"So you're a fanboy?" Wolf felt his face blank, and the sniggers of the members behind him did not help.

"Fuck no. I just know that Cinder is a bigger threat than you, no offense," "Some taken." "and I want to fuck her over big time." Wolf said, a subtle happiness seeping into his voice nearer the end.

"Why? Do you want to do that? Mess up her plans." Roman questioned, and person took a while to respond.

"Because, her plans, interfere with my plans." " _Granted, my plans involve keeping everyone alive. They're still plans."_

"You have plans?" Roman questioned. "What are they?"

"Mostly just keeping people she wants dead alive." Wolf said, idly looking at his fingers. "But, I've also got my eye on the CCT. And she wants to hack it. So, not really keen on letting that happen." " _Keep the lies coming."_

Roman said nothing, instead taking a long drag of his cigar. When he finally blew out the smoke, he spoke. "So what do you want me to do?" And like that, Wolf smiled.

"All I need you to do, is tell me about her personal plans. Stuff she's doing on her own. So that way, I won't be foiling anything she wants you to do." Roman nodded, bringing a hand to his chin.

"Any time in particular you want to know about?" Roman complied.

"Let's see. A day or two after she'll hack the CCT- I mean, fail to hack the CCT. From then until the start of the Vytal Festival. Oh, but I know about the whole, train thing don't worry." He noticed them tense.

"Relax, I said I won't stop anything involving you." Wolf said. "I'd say I promise, but I doubt you'd hold that in much regard." Roman nodded his head in agreement.

"Wait, I don't even know who the hell you are." Roman said suddenly, pointing and accusing finger at the man of equal height in front of him.

"There are no kids here, you can curse you know?" Wolf said with a slight laugh in his voice. Roman did not flush, such an action would be embarrassing for him.

"Alright, tell me who the fuck you are, and we have a deal." Roman said, a hand outstretched.

The helmeted man smiled widely, his steely blue eyes sparking, with the flickering light of Roman's cigar dancing in them. He gripped the hand and shook tightly, staring Roman in his eye as he spoke.

" **I'm The Wolf."**

* * *

 _Cinder, prepare for a world of annoyance. Crue has created a new persona, The Wolf. He has also come to terms with the fact that everyone he knew is more than likely dead. And he made a deal with a renowned criminal. Not a bad job for one day's work._

 _So yes, no smut in this chapter(unfortunately), but lots of annoying Cinder. Also, if you couldn't tell, Crue's 'Hound' clothes are slightly based on Wolverine's outfit in 'Wolverine: Origins'. They may have fucked up deadpool, but everything else was pretty good._

 _Speaking of references, let's play a game. I've hidden one in here that's from another Marvel movie. Granted it's a slightly less well known movie. If you can find it, PM me, and you will receive a prize of a request. Maybe it's an Omake, maybe it's a ship, maybe it's Crue completely destroying Cinder, or being completely destroyed. Up to you really. If it's something I can't do, I'll let you know. Otherwise, happy hunting, and as always_

 _Until Next Time._

 _-Friday_

 _*edit* The reference has been found! By one Enerjack. Congratulations to them, and I hope you've had fun! *edit*_


	10. Class Act

There was never a point in Crue's life where he thought he would ask the following question.

"How many of your fetishes did I just sate?" He asked, panting slightly, as Neopolitan lay sprawled across his chest, also panting. They were back in the same room, various clothes, ropes and instruments of pleasure scattered around the room.

Neo began counting on her hands, before giving up after using up all her fingers. "A lot." She breathed. The two were naked, after Torchwick instructed Neo to take Crue, or **The Wolf** rather, back to wherever the hell he came from.

Neo partially followed his instructions, bringing Crue to her own little penthouse in Vale, with a reminder about him owing her. Crue reluctantly obliged, the memories of his previous girlfriend, who may or may not still be alive at the forefront of his mind.

Crue grabbed his scroll from a night stand, one littered with different lubricants. He checked the time. "It's 2am. How long were we going at it?" Neo shrugged from her place atop Crue, honestly unsure of the answer, having lost all sense of time after her third orgasm.

"I think I should get back." Crue groaned, sitting up on the bed. Neo met his eyes with a pout. "Don't look at me like that. Considering what happened earlier, everyone's probably freaking out as to where I am."

Crue half expected his scroll to start ringing, but it stayed silent. "Fine." Neo grumbled. The Faunus sighed in relief, as he lifted up her head and placed a kiss on her lips. "I'm going to be seeing you later anyway."

"What do you mean?" Crue asked, midway to pulling on his boxers. Neo sighed, rubbing her temple.

"Cinder wants me to meet you. Or rather, the team you hang around with." Her voice was quiet, annoyed at the raven haired antagonist. "She wants me to get information on you."

"Have you told her anything?" Crue asked. Neo looked up at him with squinted eyes. "Well that happened before tonight, so you didn't know I was on your side."

The petite girl sighed, but nodded. "I didn't tell her anything." She waved, before stopping, a mischievous grin on her face. "Actually, I did tell her, _one_ thing." She said, Crue raising an eyebrow in questioning.

Neo said nothing, instead pointing to Crue's groin. Crue looked down, then back at Neo. Then back down. "You told Cinder Fall…" He said, slowly approaching Neo, who was now slightly nervous. "…the size of my dick?"

Neo nodded, and instantly found herself scooped up in Crue's arms as he spun her around, holding her close to his chest as he laughed loudly. "JESUS FUCKING CHRIST I LOVE YOU!"

Neo giggled along, not quite sure who 'Jesus Fucking Christ' was, but happy with the statement all the same. Even if she knew he didn't quite mean it. Crue laughed, and plopped a huge kiss on Neo's lips, the girl moaning into it.

"I am so going to fuck her over with that knowledge." Crue grinned, imagining all the different ways he could annoy Cinder with that information. "Alright, I need to get back to Beacon, and start putting my plans and stuff into action." " _By that, I mean creating them."_

Neo nodded, as Crue had gotten completely dressed, and was now waiting to be returned to Beacon. Neo briefly closed her eyes, as she began to shatter like a mirror from her feet up, clothes appearing on her body.

She stepped closer to Crue, and wrapped her arms around his neck, bringing him down into a kiss. He met it happily, then asked a question once it broke. "I thought your Semblance was teleportation?"

Neo shrugged, causing Crue to sigh. "Man, I hate continuity." With that, Crue was thrown backwards, landing in a hall in Beacon's dorms.

Crue groaned as he sat up, rubbing his back slightly. "Jesus. Talk about a scratcher." He glanced at his surroundings. "Where the hell am I?" He recognised it as Beacon, but was unsure as to where exactly he was.

He began walking, looking for a window, or noticeable landmark. Crue whistled as he walked among the halls, the silence of the night almost overwhelming. " _It's always so nice to be awake at times like this."_ He hummed in thought, as he found an exit, leading him into the courtyard.

" _Why the hell was I in the second year dorms?"_ He briefly wondered, before walking across the quiet courtyard, ceasing his whistling so he could appreciate the silence. He stopped halfway, staring up at the statue that depicted a warrior raising his sword high, standing next to a woman who wielded a battle axe.

Beneathe the two was a Grimm, a Beowulf, and it appeared to be fleeing. Hard to tell when it's made of stone. " _How many fics are there where the dude is secretly Jaune's great, great, something or other?"_ Crue questioned, staring at the male Huntsman.

"Mr. Cullen." A voice came, causing Crue to freeze. He was somewhat proud of himself for not screaming, as he turned around to find out who had called out to him.

"Ozpin." He nodded to the grey haired man, who stood there drinking his coffee. "Evening."

"I think it is a bit later than evening Mr. Cullen." Ozpin replied, his hazel eyes twinkling. Crue took his pocketwatch out, opening it and glancing at the time.

"Ah. Appears you're right." He muttered, placing the watch back in his pocket. The two stood there, in a slightly awkward silence. "What are you doing up this late then?"

Ozpin chuckled, swirling the brew within his mug. "Isn't that what I should be asking you? You are the student after all." Crue blanked, agreeing with the headmaster. "But if you must know, I heard some rather interesting rumours involving a robot, rose petals, and various explosions."

"That so?" Crue coughed, feeling his leather jacket tighten inexplicably. "Interesting. Perhaps it was a few huntsman, or huntresses, trying to take down a known criminal." He shrugged, becoming very interested in his fingernails all of a sudden.

"Possibly." Ozpin mused. "It's also possible that they were huntresses-in-training." The silence was palpable, only broken by a slight cough from Crue.

"You got any of that coffee to spare?" He asked, then watched in curiosity as Ozpin pulled a flask from behind him, along with a spare mug. He took the mug, and allowed Ozpin to pour him a cup.

"I'm not dreaming am I?" He questioned, staring down into the brown liquid.

"I can assure you that you are not." Ozpin told him, as Crue sipped the drink.

"Hm. Quite nice." He said. "Always been more of a tea man though." He continued drinking his coffee, only realising what the implications of that meant once he had finished drinking. "I am going to be up all night thanks to this."

Ozpin chuckled lightly. "Perhaps you could use the time to go over your notes. I hear from Professor Port that you make a wonderful addition to his class."

"You flatter me." Crue joked, handing the empty mug back to Ozpin. He turned back to the statue, gesturing to the male atop it. "You wouldn't happen to know who that is, would you?"

"I'm afraid that I do not. May I ask why you wish to know?" Ozpin questioned.

Crue shrugged. "I don't know. Just wondering if it was actually a person, or just a generic huntsman." He stretched his arms, before turning to Ozpin. "I best be off then. Get back to the room I'm staying in. And have yet to receive a different one. Hm." He raised an eyebrow to Ozpin, who simply sipped his beverage.

Crue shook his head, waving goodbye to Ozpin and making his way to the first year dorms. His legs carried him to RWBY's dorm almost automatically. " _Wonder if their asleep."_ He thought as he unlocked the door with his scroll.

"CRUE!" " _Apparently they're not."_ Crue was thrown back by four people tackling him. "Why…." He wheezed out.

"WHERE WERE YOU?!" Blake exclaimed. "YOU DON'T SHOW UP TO THE MEETING AND THEN YOU SUDDENLY APPEAR RIDING A ROBOT!" Crue groaned, covering his ears.

"Too many people. Went in from the roof. You shot the lights out and I jumped on the mech." Crue explained, shifting under the mass of females.

"And where did you go after that?" Weiss asked, also lying atop of him.

"Well, I sort of fell off after you turned the street to ice." Weiss had the decency to look embarrassed about the fact, but Crue quickly continued speaking. "Hey it worked, don't worry about me."

"Where'd you go after that?" Yang asked.

"Uh, back to the warehouse to see if there were any more White Fang members still there. Spoiler alert. There were. And now there aren't." Crue smiled, but groaned slightly.

"You beat up all of the White Fang there?" Blake asked incredulously.

"Yeah." Crue lied. "But, I mean, they're grunts. Didn't really put up much of a fight. There was this one dude with a chainsaw though." He shrugged, as the girls decided to get up from him.

All minus one, however. Ruby Rose was still lying on Crue's chest, being the first one to tackle him, and also the first to fall asleep apparently. "Uhh." Crue droned, looking up to Yang.

"Do you have any idea how worried she was about you missing?" Yang told the Faunus, who felt his stomach drop like an anchor.

"I- Well now I feel like a piece of shit." Crue muttered, frowning as he looked upon Ruby's sleeping form. "Drag me into the room." He requested, to strange glances. "Trust me." Yang shrugged, grabbing Crue by his heels and dragging him into the centre of the room.

"Thank you. Now, Weiss, please get Ruby's blanket from her bed." Weiss shot Crue a puzzled look, but did as instructed, grabbing the sheet from atop the bunk. "Now put it over us." Once more, despite being confused, she did so.

"Thank you." Crue said, as Ruby sighed within her sleep, snuggling up to Crue.

"Wait." Yang began, eyes flashing dangerously red. "You did all that, so you could sleep with her?" Her fists clenched dangerously.

"No. I just don't want to wake her up. She fell asleep on me." Crue said, knowing he was playing a _very_ dangerous game with his words. Yang growled as her hair glowed, and Crue continued speaking. "She's like a sister to me, Yang. I'm not going to do anything."

A part of Crue's heart panged at the truth of the statement. He missed his blood siblings, having only had them in his life for a few years, before they were wrongfully taken from him. Yang looked at Crue sceptically, but said nothing.

"You'll be in the room Yang. Don't you trust him?" Blake whispered to the blonde, who grumbled and turned away, hopping up on her bunk and facing the wall. " _I kind of feel like a dick for doing this. But, she is too far gone to wake up now."_

Crue waited for Blake and Weiss to go to bed, before realising that they would not go to bed clothed like Yang. "My eyes are closed." Crue said, screwing his eyes tightly shut. There was a moment of hesitation, before Crue could hear the two girls moving around, presumably getting into their pyjamas.

Crue kept his eyes closed, until he heard a click of a light switch. He opened them, to find he could see the room, despite it being basically pitch black. " _Oh yeah. Faunus."_ Crue recalled, slipping a hand out from under the blanket and taking his sunglasses off.

He placed them on the floor under Weiss' bed, so that he could remember where they were when he woke up. He stretched his arm, and laid it against his chest. Or, Ruby's back, rather. Crue looked down at the sleeping girl, an expression of relaxation on her pale face.

" _I can't believe everything she has to go through."_ Crue frowned, recalling the events of the Vytal Festival, and how terribly it turned out. " _I'm going to make sure that doesn't happen. No fifteen year old should have go through that. Hell. No one should have to go through that."_

Crue pressed a little harder on Ruby's back, bringing her in for what was practically a hug. She let out a happy sigh, cuddling up to the apparently tender hearted Faunus. " _She's also so damn cute."_ Crue thought, lying his head back and staring up at the ceiling.

" _Damn coffee. This is going to be a long night."_

…

"-Crue?" Crue snorted awake, having barely slept for less than an hour before he was awoken. He rubbed his eyes, and looked at who called him. Ruby was staring up at him, her silver eyes sparkling in the morning light.

"Hey Rubes." Crue groaned out, stretching his arms. "What's up?"

"Um, the ceiling?" Ruby answered uncertainly, causing Crue to laugh softly. "But, uh, why am I sleeping on you?"

"Oh. That." Crue shrugged. "Last night when I came back you were the first to tackle me." Ruby looked a small bit sheepish, but Crue continued. "And then you fell asleep on me. Cause you were so tired from waiting up for me. And I felt bad, so I just sort of, left you there."

"Hmmmm." Ruby said, staring Crue in his steely blue eyes. "Alright. You're pretty comfy anyway." Ruby replied, yawning and resting her head on Crues chest once more.

Crue yawned also, grabbing his scroll from his pocket and checking the time. "Uh oh."

"Wuh oh? Uh oh is never good." Ruby said, sitting up on Crue's stomach.

"Get your whistle." Crue said, turning his scroll round to show Ruby the time. Ruby's silver eyes widened, as she dashed to her drawers, giving Crue just enough time to cover all four of his ears.

The shrill sound rang through the room, rudely awakening everyone else in it. All of them yelled in shock, before seeing the cause of it was Ruby anxiously teetering back and forth. "We're almost late!" She exclaimed, causing the other members of RWBY to grab their scrolls and check the time.

Weiss screeched in fear, and dashed to the bathroom. The shower turned on instantly, and a pale blue nightgown was flung out of the room, the door slamming shut afterwards. Blake and Yang also dashed about the room, granted Yang was still in a zombified state, and was mostly hobbling in a rushed manner.

Crue was also slightly rushed, tossing off his jacket and shirt, his hidden claws and bag coming off with it. "HOLY HELL!" Yang suddenly exclaimed, causing Crue to whip around frantically. He saw Yang staring at him with wide lilac eyes.

Crue looked down at his chest, but found nothing out of the ordinary. Aside from the fact it there was a six pack there. " _Still getting used to that."_ Crue thought, before looking back to Yang with a raised eyebrow.

"WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR BACK!?" She yelled, pointing at Crue.

"My back?" Crue questioned, reaching a hand behind him to run a hand over his skin. His eyes widened as he felt several long scratch marks. " _Damnit Neo!"_ He mentally cursed. "I, have no idea." Crue said, turning around slowly so his back could be seen.

He could hear Ruby and Blake's gasp, although the latter seemed more scandalised. "Maybe it happened last night, when I was fighting the White Fang?" Crue suggested, sounding as genuinely confused as he could.

Before anyone could say anything, the bathroom door was flung open, and Weiss strolled out of the steam. "What are you all standing around for!? We've got barely enough time to get to- GOODNESS WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR BACK!?"

Weiss stopped mid-sentence, staring at the scratching post that was Crue's back. "Don't know. Will find out later." Crue replied, grabbing a white shirt from his drawers and tossing it on. "They don't hurt anyway."

Crue quickly pulled on his blazer and tied his tie. He turned to see the others also getting ready. "I'll head on, let Port know you might be late." His statement was met with thanks from the group, as he left the room and jogged towards the classroom.

…

" _Fucking. Cardio. Need to work on that."_ Crue panted as he came to a stop outside Port's room. He entered, finding people still settling into their seats. Before finding a seat of his own, he briskly walked up to the desk, where Port was shuffling around a few papers.

"Sorry, Sir?" He questioned, Port looking up in surprise.

"Ah. Mr. Cullen. How delightful to see you once more. May I ask what is the problem?" The moustachioed teacher questioned.

"Just that RWBY may be a bit late. They were up fairly late last night." Crue told him, the aged professor nodding.

"And what of yourself? Were you well rested?" He asked Crue, who chuckled lightly.

"Sir, I drank some of Ozpins coffee at 2am last night. I've got bags that would make Coco Adel jealous." The jolly teacher laughed loudly, a hand resting on his sizeable belly.

"Well, I shall not blame you should you be unable to focus in today's lecture. But do try to take notes." Port waved him off, Crue lightly nodding his head in thanks. The Wolf Faunus took a seat up the very back, and almost immediately felt his body slip off from exhaustion.

" _I have done too much exercise for one night. First running on the rooftops after Penny, then to warehouse, then riding a damn mech, then a bullhead. Fighting Neo. Fucking Neo. Wait. Does sex count as exercise? Well, what I had last night sure as hell was."_ Crue tried to sit up straight, but found it understandably difficult to do so.

He reached up and rubbed his eyes under his shades, which he had managed to grab after Ruby blew her whistle. " _Alright, I know exactly what to do."_ Crue thought, as he leaned forward, placing both elbows on the table, and interlinked his fingers.

He rested his chin on his hands, and closed his eyes. Almost immediately, Crue felt himself drifting off. " _Thank God for sunglasses."_ Crue thought, the fact his closed eyes could not be seen by anyone else.

His rest was cut short by a buzzing in his trousers. And no, that is not an innuendo. Crue groaned, grabbing his scroll from his pocket and checking the message he just received. " _Neo?"_ He opened the message, it only showing two words.

"Polly Trio." Crue muttered, unsure as to what that meant. " _Is that meant to mean something?"_ He wondered, stuffing the scroll back into his pocket, and repositioning himself as he was earlier. He heard Port begin to speak, and found himself drifting off to sleep once more.

As he heard the portly professor speak, Crue could think of one thing as he was nodding off to dreamland. " _Reminds of that time Gavin, Michael and Ryan did the ASMR thing."_ He shuddered lightly at the memory.

" _Baste the turkey…"_ He could hear Port's voice in his head, and shook vigorously in order to remove that sound. " _God. Never do that again."_ Crue thought, closing his eyes and letting the professor continue the lecture.

…

"That's all for today!" Crue awoke with a start, hearing a bell chime and Port announce the end of his lecture. He blinked hazily, rubbing sleep from his eyes under his glasses, turning to examine his surroundings.

He was surprised when he saw Ruby sitting next to him, along with the rest of the team. "When did you get here?" He asked confusedly.

He received stares of confusion in return. "What do you mean? Port had barely started when we came in and sat next to you." Yang told the Faunus, who scratched the back of his ears lightly.

"Oh really?" Crue asked while yawning. "Kinda fell asleep as soon as he started talking."

"You were asleep?" Ruby questioned. Crue nodded in confirmation. "That explains why you didn't laugh at my picture." She said, the bottom of her fist connecting with an open palm.

"Picture?" Crue asked, as Weiss groaned. Ruby smiled, taking out a slightly crumpled piece of paper from her pocket and showing it to Crue.

Crue let out a laugh, before covering his mouth. The picture showed Roman Torchwick being stood upon by Ruby, Crescent Rose rising dramatically in the background. For a crayon drawing it was quite good.

"Do we have a fridge we can stick it on?" Crue asked, as Ruby beamed and folded the paper, placing it back into her pocket. The five exited the room, the members of the team conversing with each other, Crue falling behind slightly, still somewhat tired.

He yawned, a hand reaching behind him to run over his back, feeling the scratches on his skin. " _Neo, thou art a psychotic houndmother."_ Crue thought, hand falling to his side. " _Don't know why I just thought that in Shakespearean, but who cares."_

Crue caught up with the girls, mentioning something about the classes for today. As they walked and talked, Crue suddenly gained a sense of dread. He did not know what caused it, but based on previous experience, it would more than likely make itself known soon.

"Oh! Look! It's Cinder!" Ruby suddenly cried, jabbing a finger forward. " _Ah. Know it makes sense."_ Crue glanced at the direction Ruby was pointing in, but found his vision being obscured by a mass of black and white.

He felt a weight being thrown at his chest, and leaned back slightly. Instead of falling backward like he normally would when someone or something tackled him, he acted like a springboard, righting himself almost instantly.

His eyes focused, and see saw jade green orbs staring back at him. He was confused for a moment, but then recognised the girls black ponytails that hung at the side of her head. "Ne-" Crue was cut off when Neo pecked his lips, to scandalised gasps from team RWBY.

Crue saw her eyes change briefly, and glance downward. Under normal circumstances, the Faunus would have assumed she was making an advance on him, but then he recalled her message earlier. "Polly?"

Neo-Polly, nodded happily kissing Crue once more, to more surprised gasps. "Crue! Aren't, um, aren't you going to introduce us?" Blake asked, staring between the Faunus and the girl.

"Right." Crue said, setting Neo-Polly down on the ground, her hand instantly darting to his. Crue glanced down at her briefly, before turning back to RWBY. "This is Polly Trio, my-" His mouth ran dry, looking down to Neo, who looked back, a small frown on her features.

"So, Polly." A voice entered the conversation, Crue and Neo turned, scowls on both of their features as Cinder, Emerald and Mercury joined the group. Crue was slightly surprised by the intense look on Mercury's face, but did not care for it in the slightest.

"This is the boy you've been, so eager, to introduce us to." Cinder said, eyeing Crue warily. Neo nodded, wrapping her arm around Crue's and hugging it tightly, only increasing the glare on Mercury's features.

" _The fuck's his problem."_ Crue thought, looking down to Neo. He mouthed the words 'what did you say we are?' to the petite girl, who mouthed back the answer.

"Yeah, I'm Polly's date." Crue told Cinder.

"WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN!?" Yang exclaimed, hands grabbing the top of her head in shock. "I've missed out on so many teasing opportunities!"

Crue sighed, rubbing his hand on the bridge of his nose. "Two days ago." He looked down to Neo in questioning, who nodded.

"Wait. Wasn't that when you took your, walk?" Weiss clarified.

"That is correct. I took an enthusiastic walk through Vale." Crue agreed.

"And ended up with a girlfriend?" Blake questioned.

"A _very_ , enthusiastic walk." Crue smirked, Neo matching the expression.

Cinder, Emerald and Mercury all scowled lightly at Crue, whereas the members of RWBY looked at each other confusedly.

"Now, I believe we have a combat class to get to." Crue said, walking through the group, Neo happily skipping along, but not before sticking her tongue out at Mercury. The grey haired boy clenched his fists as he stormed after them, leaving only the girls together.

"What's with him?" Yang asked, looking to Emerald.

Emerald sighed lightly, and explained. "Mercury was trying to get with Polly before Crue came along. So he's still mad about it." He was also mad about something else, about certain differences in size, but Emerald wasn't going to say that.

"So he's jelly?" Yang clarified. Emerald nodded, and began walking after her partner. The members of team RWBY followed, it's leader stopping for a moment.

"Aren't you coming Cinder?" The young girl asked, the elder girl smiling at her forcibly.

"Unfortunately not. I will have to miss out on this class. Please give Professor Goodwitch my regards." Cinder told Ruby, as she turned and began walking away. Ruby shrugged, following after her team.

…

"Now, after that lovely, show." Goodwitch said, gesturing to where a member of team BLDD was being carried off by the other members, Yang fist pumping wildly. "We will have a special match."

Crue sat up slightly at this, having not yet battled, and having a suspiciously bad feeling about this 'special match'. Neo, who had her arms wrapped around Crue's, looked up at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Bad feeling." He muttered down to her, the petite girl shrugging and resting her head against Crue's shoulder once more. Crue waited for Professor Goodwitch to speak, a deep feeling of dread settling in his stomach.

"We will be havin battle." There were a few surprised murmurs around the class, all of them wondering who would be the unlucky person that would have to fight a team on their own.

Crue relaxed slightly, knowing that the fighter would be doing just fine. "The team that will fight will be…" Goodwitch trailed off, as the randomiser spun. "Team CRDL." Crue heard Cardin give a whoop of joy, causing him to groan.

" _Doesn't make Cardin any less of an asshole though."_ Cardin and his team made their way down to the arena, already in their combat outfits for some reason.

"And the lone fighter will be…" Crue took the silence as an opportunity to drink from a can of soda he had bought earlier. "Crue Cullen."

"Hck!" Crue choked on his drink, coughing it up and hunching over. Neo looked shocked, and began roughly patting his back.

"Mr. Cullen. You will be able to fight, correct?" Crue raised a thumbs up from his hunched position, coughing up the rest of his lungs and standing up. He gave Neo a thumbs up and made his way to the locker room.

" _Why?"_ Crue wondered as he got changed out of his uniform. " _Why not Pyrrha?"_ He grabbed Setanta from his locker and slammed it closed. " _I don't benefit anything from this. The fuck is wrong with you?"_

Crue exited from the locker room into the arena, swinging his hurl onehanded. He saw CRDL waiting on the opposite side, the leader of it wearing an annoyingly smug grin. " _I'm gonna smack that grin right into the fucking ground."_

He glanced at the other members of the opposing team, trying to recall their names. " _Russel, Dove, and Lark."_ His eyes widened momentarily behind his glasses, realising something. All of their names were based on birds.

Crue did not like birds. Crue did not like birds, at all.

…

"Huh."

"What is it?" Weiss asked Yang, who had apparently noticed something.

"I think Crue just, twitched, or something." She said, peering at the Faunus.

"Is it just me," Ruby began, causing Weiss and Yang to look at her inquisitively. "Or does Crue look, kinda, evil?"

Her words stirred the two people sitting behind her, Emerald and Mercury sitting up and paying closer attention to the boy's face, the other member of their team already watching the match with glee.

They waited for the match to begin, to see how the chips would fall.

…

"Oh, I'm going to have so much fun with this." Crue muttered, resting Setanta on his shoulder as he stared menacingly at his opponents.

The one with the Mohawk, Crue could remember his name being Russel, gulped slightly. "Uh, Cardin. Maybe this isn't such a good idea."

"Shut it." Cardin growled. "I've been putting up with this asshole long enough. Time for some revenge."

Crue chuckled at the other end of the arena, having heard everything due to his heritage. "Just so you know…" Crue smiled, grabbing his hurl in both hands. " **This Is Gonna Hurt.** "

 **[This Is Gonna Hurt – Sixx A.M.]**

The buzzer counted down, Crue gripping his hurley tight with a maniacal grin. Each member of the opposing team readied their weapons, Cardin drawing a line across his neck and directing the action at Crue.

"Oh…" The buzzer sounded, and team CRDL ran towards Crue. "This gonna be fun." Crue dashed forward, his hurl outstretched in one hand. Cardin swung his mace back, inadvertently knocking the blonde one backwards.

Crue slipped to the ground, skidding under the swing, and bringing his hurl sideways to knock Cardin's feet out from under him. The larger boy fell, Crue using the opportunity to stand up and slam his hurl into Cardin's gut, sending him crashing to the ground.

He had no room to breathe, as the blue haired one, Sky, slashed at him with his halberd. Crue jumped back, leaving Cardin groaning on the ground as Sky and Dove stood before him, protecting him.

Crue flipped his hurl round, aiming the rifle end at them. Sky's eyes widened, as he leaped out of the way, but Dove raised his own weapon, a longsword with barrels near the hilt. They both shot, Crue running left and Dove running the opposite way.

Crue counted himself lucky Dove had terrible aim. After Crue had shot at Dove's legs, causing him to stumble and fall, he saw Russel preparing to attack. He jumped into the air, and began spinning rapidly. He hit the ground, and darted towards Crue in a spinning ball.

"Piss off Sonic!" Crue exclaimed, as he flipped his hurl round, grabbing it by the handle, and smacking the green haired boy. The hurl made contact, sending Russel flying backwards, past a rising Cardin, who watched as his teammate crashed into the wall.

Cardin looked at Crue, and raised his mace high, slamming it down to the ground, sending a line of explosions towards Crue.

The Faunus' eyes widened, and he jumped sideways to dodge the attack, only to have to bend over backwards to avoid a swing from Sky. Crue changed Setanta into its sword form, and slashed at his opponent.

Sky rotated and swung his halberd, blocking most every attack from Crue. Out of the corner of his, Crue saw Dove rushing towards them, and acted rapidly. He swung, and stuck his sword behind the staff of Sky's weapon.

Confusion flashed on the boy's face, before he was roughly jerked to the side, crashing into his blonde teammate. Now that Crue had a moment to breathe, he changed Setanta back his hurl form and began forming a ball. Dove took this opportunity to dash in, slashing at him.

Crue managed to hold him off, while still pressing his finger down on the trigger. After the Dust ball had fully formed, Crue raised a foot and kicked Dove back, before catching the ball before it fell. He tossed it up in one hand, and looked at his opponents.

He squinted his eyes slightly, calculating something in his head. When he finally nodded, he swung his hurl, connecting with the falling Dust ball. The ball rushed towards Cardin, then bounced off him and hit Sky, then Russel, before finally exploding on Dove.

A cloud of dust appeared on the arena floor, Cardin appearing soon after, jumping high and raising his mace behind his head.

Crue backpedalled away from Cardin, his mace coming down where he was but a second ago. There were no explosions this time, which Crue took the opportunity to dash back in and slash at Cardin with his sword.

Cardin tried to block, but his bulky frame was no match for Crue's speed. As Crue raised his sword to swing once more, he felt a searing pain in his hands. Russel had managed to return to the battle, and shot at Crue, hitting his hand.

Crue hissed in pain, and his weapon fell from his grasp. He only had a split second to realise what just happened, before he felt Cardin's mace connect with his stomach, sending him skyward. Crue spun in the air, before landing on all fours a few metres away from Cardin.

There was silence for a moment, before a small 'clink', echoed through the arena. Crue's glasses had fallen from his face, lying on the ground. Crue slowly stood, and looked at his opponents. The ones that were still standing, Cardin, Russel and Sky, took a step back in fear.

Crue was smiling, and his eyes were filled with intensity. "Well, now I have no weapon. What should I do?" He asked, as he took slow, deliberate steps towards the three. He cracked his knuckles together, and tilted his head slightly.

"Oh! I know…" He dashed forward, towards Russel, who began firing at him wildly. They all missed, flying past Crue or hitting the ground by his feet. "I'M GOING TO BEAT A MOTHERFUCKER!" He tackled into Russel, grabbing his leg.

"WITH ANOTHER MOTHERFUCKER!" He spun with all his strength, heaving Russel from his place and sending him smacking into Cardin's chest. The taller boy grunted and fell backwards, leaving Sky the only one standing.

Sky did not know what to do, he could accidentally hurt his teammate, who was currently screaming bloody murder as he was whipped around in the air. "Sorry Russel!" The navy haired boy yelled, as he slammed his halberd down on Crue.

Crue shoved Russel into his teammate, the two of them losing balance, and Sky's halberd missed completely. The only two left standing now were Crue and Cardin. Crue stared at his feet, and saw his hurl laying there on the ground.

He looked back up to Cardin, and smiled eerily. Cardin glared at Faunus, and readied his mace. Crue kicked up his hurl and caught it, spinning it singlehandedly. There was a beat, and then they both charged.

Cardin pulled his mace back, ready to smack Crue silly. What he, nor anyone watching, expected, was for Crue to through his weapon skyward. Cardin's eyes followed the weapon in confusion, before realising his mistake.

He looked back down just in time to see a pair of soles aimed at his face. Crue extended his legs rapidly, dropkicking Cardin and sending him sprawling backwards. Crue landed on the ground roughly, his back aching.

"I can't believe that worked…" Crue panted, before sticking a hand out and grabbing his hurl as it fell to earth. He jumped up, and swung his hurl round so it would be ready for an attack. He realised the lack of need for it, as every member of team CRDL was currently on the ground in various states of pain.

"And that's the match." Professor Goodwitch said, as she stepped forward into the arena.

"Lucky shot." Cardin groaned out, before falling over completely.

"Well done Mr. Cullen." Goodwitch congratulated, looking at the fallen form of Cardin. "Though, do try not to use your opponents against each other." Crue laughed and rubbed the back of his head awkwardly.

"Thanks Ms. Goodwitch." Crue nodded at the mature blonde.

"Professor." She corrected. "Alright. Now I know that's a tough act to follow, but we have time for one more sparring match." The teacher said, as she altered her scroll. "Any volunteers."

Crue scanned the audience, looking up to where team RWBY were seated. Behind them, he saw Mercury, Emerald and Neo. Neo waved down to him, blowing a kiss in his direction. Crue chuckled and pretended to catch it, placing his hand against his cheek once he did.

He noticed he wasn't wearing his glasses anymore, having forgotten to put them back on after they fell off from Cardin's attack. He noticed them lying a short distance away, and walked over them as Goodwitch waited for a volunteer.

He grabbed them, and then froze just before he put them on. "I'll do it." He heard a voice say. He turned to see Mercury holding his hand up high.

"Mercury, was it?" Goodwitch asked, somewhat miffed at the fact Blake got out of sparring. "Very well, let's find you an opponent."

"Actually," Mercury began, causing Crue to groan inwardly. " _Oh fuck. This is gonna be where he finds out Pyrrha's semblance."_ "I wanna fight… him." He pointed a finger, and Crue felt himself tense up.

He met Mercury's eyes beneath his glasses, and saw the accusing finger pointed in his direction. Neo and Emerald both glared up at him, but Mercury kept his hand raised. "Me?" Crue dared.

"I'm afraid Mr. Cullen has just finished a match. I recommend you choose another partner." Goodwitch frowned at Mercury. Crue had opposing thoughts in his head. " _If I don't let him, he could choose Pyrrha. If I let him fight me… wait. What could go wrong if it was me?"_

"No. It's fine." Crue said, waving Goodwitch down. "It's only fair we let the ones from different schools fight as well." He turned back to Mercury, and glared at him. Mercury returned the glare, walking down to the arena.

He casually strolled in, the action annoying Crue. He entered the arena, walking over so that there was a fair distance between him and Crue. There was no countdown for this match, it would all depend on who ever made the first move.

"Prior warning." Crue said, forming a ball of Dust with his hurl. Mercury raised his arms in a boxing position, but raised an eyebrow all the same.

" **I'm dangerous**."

 **[Dangerous – Royal Deluxe]**

Mercury dashed forward, Crue doing the same, tossing the ball into the air. Mercury slammed his front foot down, and spun, raising his other one high. Crue used the flat part of his hurl to block it, then moved it so Mercury would be sent off balance.

While one of his opponents legs were still in the air, Crue kneeled down and slashed at Mercury's foot. The boy fell over, and Crue raised his hurl high. Before he could slam it down on Mercury, he spun round and flipped away from Crue.

Crue watched as the boy skid to a halt, and held his hand out, catching the Dust ball he had thrown earlier. Crue threw it up and brought his hurl back. He swung, but at the last moment angled his hurl downwards.

The ball flew towards Mercury and exploded at his feet, blasting the boy back a bit. From the cloud of dust the explosion caused, Crue rushed out of it with Setanta in its sword form. He swung at Mercury, who brought a foot up to deflect it.

He brought that foot down, and then raised his other to kick Crue. Crue raised his left arm, feeling the cool metal of his armour hidden beneath his shirt. Mercury's foot made contact with Crue's arm, and a frown crossed the grey haired boys face.

Crue spun his wrist round, grabbing onto Mercury's boot. Mercury's grey eyes widened, as he was jerked towards Crue, and then sent flying back when Crue punched him with his right hand, his hurl also being held in the same fist.

Mercury skid to a halt, frowning at Crue, before nodding his head in a 'not bad' fashion, giving a "Hmph." Of annoyance.

…

"Hey, your friends doing pretty good." Ruby complimented, turning round to look at Emerald and Polly. They both smiled awkwardly. Once the girl had turned back round, their expressions turned into a grimace, glancing at one another.

"Why is he going after Crue?" Emerald whispered to Neo. "He was supposed to fight Nikos." Neo took out her scroll, typing for a moment. She handed to screen to her companion, who looked at it strangely.

"Why's he jealous?" Emerald whispered, the petite girl gesturing for her scroll back. She closed out of her typing application, and opened her gallery. When she found the picture she was looking for, she handed the scroll to Emerald, who almost dropped it in surprise.

"Normally I'd be disgusted." Emerald said. "But honestly, I'm disappointed." The picture was something that Mercury had sent to Neo, and was by no means as impressive of Crue. "Jeez. That's like…" She began counting on her fingers. "What, four inches?"

Neo nodded with a smirk, then took her scroll back and began typing again. She held her scroll up to Emerald, who made a slightly curious expression. She shook her head, the expression vanishing. "No. I don't want to see Crue's."

Neo shrugged, as if to say 'Your loss', and turned back to the battle.

…

Mercury slammed a foot down on Crue, only for it to be halted by Crue holding his hurl horizontally above his head. Crue pushed forward, sending Mercury spiralling back. Once Mercury had righted himself, he looked to see Crue forming another Dust ball.

Mercury ran forward, as Crue threw the ball high. Mercury kicked his feet in rapid succession, getting more and more annoyed every times Crue blocked the attacks. "You know…" Mercury grunted out, still rapidly attacking him. "Not many people still stand after this."

"Whatever you say, peglegs." Crue muttered. Mercury missed a kick out of shock, and that mistake proved fatal. Crue slammed his hurl into Mercury's side, sending him careening into a wall. Just as Mercury was about to fix himself, he was sent further into the wall by Crue hitting his Dust ball at him.

A buzzer sounded, and Goodwitch spoke. "Crue Cullen is the victor of the match." Crue smirked, raising his hurl high to applause from team RWBY and JNPR. Neo clapped loudly as well, but was cut off by a stare from Emerald.

Crue swung his hurl once, and rested it on his back, where he had implemented a navy, magnetic plate, similar to what Blake had to holster her weapon. Crue walked out of the arena, catching up with RWBY as they exited.

He passed by Emerald and Neo, the latter winking at him. Crue nodded back with a smirk, and exited the building Mercury showing up after him. "I. Hate. Him." He said through gritted teeth.

"Whatever, Mr. Four." Emerald sniggered, walking away from the male, Neo following after her. Mercury looked confused for a moment, before realising what the name implied.

"IT'S A GROWER!" He yelled, sprinting after them.

…

"Hey, Blake!" Sun called, running after the girl and tapping her shoulder lightly. "You, uh, you doing ok?"

"I'm fine." Blake replied, obviously not fine, if the bags under her eyes were anything to go by. Sun coughed into his hand lightly, and began to speak.

"So I hear there's this dance going on this weekend. Ah, pft, sounds pretty lame but, you and me, I'm thinking, not as lame. Huh?" Sun told his fellow Faunus, Blake squinting her eyes lightly at the blonde.

"What?" Blake said, in an almost joking tone.

"The dance!" Sun clarified. "This weekend! You wanna go or what?"

"I don't have time for a stupid dance." Blake told him, turning away from Sun. "I thought you of all people would get that."

Sun looked visibly hurt from her words, and Crue felt some pity for the boy. Crue frowned, walking over to the boy and placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry dude, she'll come round." Crue told him. Sun looked up at him with a frown.

"Yeah. To _you_ maybe." Sun said, pushing Crue's hand off him.

"The fuck are you on about?" Crue asked, seeing the other members of RWBY depart after Blake. "I don't want anything like that with Blake." Sun looked at him, visibly confused. "You're more likely to lose her to Yang if anything."

"You seriously don't want to date her?" Sun asked, trying to stare Crue in the eye.

"I don't want to date her. I've already got a girlfriend anyway." He shrugged, feeling a slight pang in his heart. "She'll come around by the dance. Promise." Sun sighed in relief, before grabbing Crue in a single armed headlock.

"I had the wrong impression of you Wolfy." He said, rubbing his fist between Crue's ears.

"I still bite." Crue warned, grabbing Sun by the arm and reversing their positions, putting Sun in a chokehold.

"Oi! What're you doing to our leader ya tosser!" Crue looked up in confusion.

"Gavin?" Crue saw, a hook hurtling towards him, and was in such a state of confusion he forgot to dodge. "Shit!" Crue cried, as the hook made contact, sending Crue onto his back.

"Woah! Scarlet! It's cool dude! He's cool!" Crue heard Sun yelling. He groaned as he sat up, rubbing where the hook made contact. Crue looked up, seeing a red haired teenager with a complete undercut.

The boy had several red markings around his left, green eye. "You alright there chap?"

" _I FUCKIGN FORGOT SCARLET WAS VOICED BY GAVIN!"_ Crue exclaimed within his mind. "Yeah. Fine." Crue said, standing up.

" _This is too fucking weird. I can't fucking- I just- no."_ Crue dusted off his shirt, and stared at Scarlet. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go and try get your leader a date for the dance." Crue walked off, screaming internally.

" _Every fucking day, I just get more reminders of the fact I'm not meant to be here. And what the fuck is the thing with Neo. How am I supposed to date her when she's against me- wait. No, she's on my side now."_

Crue sighed, making his way to team RWBY's dorm, only to decide at the last moment to go up the wall, rather than the door. " _Why me? What did I do to deserve this?"_ Crue stopped halfway up the wall.

" _Ok, I may have done some stuff, but nothing to warrant being sent to a whole 'nother world."_ Crue saw the window was open, and listened to what was being said. "I think this is a colossal waste of time."

Crue gained a confused look, then heard a door slam shut. He popped his head over the window sill, seeing Ruby, Weiss and Yang all looking down. "Did I come at a bad time?" He asked, causing them all to jump.

"No." Weiss said, a hand resting on her heart. "And can you please stop scaring us!" Crue gave her a shrug, and entered the room, sitting on the bookcase in front of the window. Before he could speak, there was a knocking at the door.

Weiss got up to answer it, and immediately regretted it. A guitar began playing, shortly followed by someone singing. " _~Weeeiissss~"_ Jaune strummed his guitar, ending it with a riff, winking at the heiress.

Weiss responded by closing the door in his face. Crue, meanwhile, had his head in his hands. " _Jesus fucking, I forgot about that."_ Jaune's voice came through from the other side of the door.

"Oh come on." He pleaded, knocking on the door. Weiss brought her palm to her face in annoyance. "I promise not to sing." Weiss sighed, before opening the door. " _~I lied~"_

" _~Weiss Schnee, will you accompany me, to the dance on…."_ Jaune looked to the sky for a moment, trying to remember. " _Sunday~"_

"Are you done?" Weiss asked.

"Yes?" Jaune said hopefully.

"No." Weiss said, closing the door. She turned round to stare at her teammates and Crue. "What?"

"And that, is why they call you the Ice Queen." Yang said, Ruby looking to her, before falling over.

Crue hopped up from his place on the bookshelf, helping Ruby up. "All my life boys have only cared about the perks of my last name."

"Jaune doesn't." Crue said automatically, before putting a hand against his mouth. Weiss looked at him inquisitively, and slightly annoyed. Crue sighed, but spoke. "I asked him what he saw in you, no offence," "Some taken." "And your name wasn't there. He didn't even know your name when he first met you apparently."

Weiss looked slightly taken aback, and said nothing for a few seconds. " _Oh shit. Did I just enable White Knight?"_ "It doesn't matter. I already have a date in mind." Crue sighed in relief. " _Oh yeah, Neptune. Good luck with that."_

"Date or no date, none of this will matter if Blake can't go." Ruby said sadly, the room falling into silence.

"Well, we know one person who has a date already." Yang said, wiggling her eyebrows, and trying to lighten the mood. Everyone else stared at Yang confusedly. The buxom brawler sighed in annoyance.

"Crue! Duh!" Weiss and Ruby's eyes both widened as they turned to stare at the Faunus, who shrunk slightly.

"Oh. Yeah. You see the thing about that is-" Crue did not finish his sentence, instead turning around and preparing to jump out the window.

"GRAB HIM!" Yang exclaimed, latching onto the boys foot. Weiss and Ruby both followed the instructions, dragging Crue back into the room.

"No! Don't!" Crue cried, as he clawed at the carpet. There was a lot of grabbing and pulling, and Crue was afraid something would be pulled down.

"We'll beat it out of him!" Yang said, jumping high and angling her elbow down, at the same moment Weiss and Ruby flipped Crue round. Crue's eyes widened in fear as he saw Yang above him, and what her elbow was inadvertently pointed at.

"WATCH THE-" "Oops." "-Why…"

…

"And finally, Crue Cullen." Emerald read out. In the dorm of team CMET(Comet), Emerald, Cinder and Mercury were discussing their plans. As soon as the Faunus' name was brought up, Mercury dropped his comic with a scowl, and began doing push ups.

"Ah, yes." Cinder frowned. "What is it they're calling him? The 'Unwavering Wolf'." The nickname had apparently formed due to the Faunus fighting whoever he was against without hesitation.

"Unwavering is right." Emerald said. "He went up against a whole team, and nothing." She thought for a moment. "Well, he did choke on his drink, but I think that was out of surprise."

Cinder nodded, taking in the information, and also noticing that Mercury had yet to say anything. "Mercury," She said, the boy flinching lightly. "Please, give your opinion on our dear friend Crue."

"He's smart. He can use the terrain to his advantage. He used that, ball thing or whatever twice, once to hit me from behind. He bounced it off the wall, and I thought he missed. Then, it hit me in the back." Mercury told her, an annoyed tone in his voice.

"I didn't see that." Emerald instantly said.

"No. You didn't. Because you were too busy talking to Neo." Mercury spat.

"Oh yeah, about Mr. Tiny." Emerald laughed, ignoring Mercury's outburst. "But he's right, in the fight before, he hit it off every team member."

Cinder frowned lightly at Mercury, not missing the absence of the second time the Faunus apparently used this, ball. "And what of the third time?" She questioned. Mercury did not answer, instead going back to doing push ups. "Mercury."

Her voice warned Mercury of intense pain should he not reply. "He caught me off guard." Cinder continued staring at him, her amber eyes boring into his head. "He said something that surprised me, ok?"

Cinder was partially shocked at the tone of voice Mercury used. The boy was not smart, but he knew his place. "What did he say?" She did not leave room for a disagreement.

Mercury sat up, wrapping his arms around his knees. "He called me peglegs." Emerald snorted lightly, but Cinder glared at Mercury.

"You lost, because of a simple insult?" She seethed. Mercury sighed and shook his head.

"You don't get it." Cinder felt her temperature flair, but Mercury continued on. "He called me peglegs." He tapped his feet, the metal prosthetics producing an odd sound. Cinder realised what he meant, her amber eyes widening. "How did he know?"

"So, he knew about your legs. And from what you say, he also knew about the plan to kill the bookstore owner. Which has _failed_ now, seeing as he is out of the country." She glared at the two, who both withered under the gaze.

"Add that to what he said to me in the hallway…" She muttered. Emerald and Mercury shot each other a confused glance, Cinder not realising she had said that louder than intended. When she saw her two lackeys looking at her expectantly, she sighed.

"In the hallway, where we first met him, he told me: " _Stay out of trouble now, won't you, Cinder?"_. How did he know my name?" Emerald and Mercury stared at each other, trying to think of an answer to the question.

Then, much to their horror, Cinder giggled. "Yes. He is interesting. Add him to the list." Emerald nodded, inputting Crue's name on her scroll.

"I'm certain you could take him." Mercury said. "Unless he says something that throws you off."

"Nothing, throws me off, Mercury." She shot the boy a glare. "But I will take care of him. In due time."

Mercury sighed lightly, lying back on the ground. "But I hate waiting." He complained.

Cinder smiled, holding up a needle that she was using to sow a garment with. "Don't worry Mercury," She said, in a faux caring voice. "We have a fun weekend ahead of us."

* * *

 _And the plot thickens. And so does Mercury's hatred for Crue. Crue managed to beat Mercury, and didn't even have to use his semblance. Man, is that OP or what. *coughs awkwardly* So yes, there was no smut this chapter, but there was implied smut. And isn't that really the same thing?_

 _No? Ok then._

 _And apparently,_ _Neo_ _Polly is Crue's girlfriend. Wonder how that will turn out. Only time_ _and I_ _will tell. So, hope you liked my music choices, if you did, or just liked the story in general, leave a comment, and as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	11. A Little Bit Of Crime

FYI: Bit o' smut in this one

* * *

" _This… is not good."_ Crue thought, being practically crushed under a loudspeaker. He was helping Yang and Weiss with preparations for the dance, the blonde bruiser easily able to carry the loudspeaker currently in her hands.

" _I. Am not. A strong man."_ Crue eventually set the speaker down, leaning against it and wiping his brow. " _Don't have high stamina. Can't lift a loudspeaker. What the fuck am I good for?"_ He frowned lightly, standing up and going over to the females.

Weiss was walking away from Ruby, failing at getting her opinion on a pair of table cloths. "Crue." She said, holding out the cloths. "Which one do you think is better?"

The Faunus stared at the outstretched fabric, honestly unable to tell a difference. "Left one." He nodded, causing Weiss to smile.

"Thank you." She said, before faltering. "Wait. My left, or your left?" Crue did not respond, walking past her to lean his hands on the table. "Crue!"

Crue sniggered, but was cut off by Yang calling out at the Heiress. "Weiss! I thought we agreed, no doilies." Weiss raised an eyebrow at the blonde.

"These aren't doilies." She said, holding up the cloths. "But we agreed, that if I don't get doilies, you don't get fog machines!"

The sound of a door opening cut off the argument. "Your dance is gonna have fog machines?" The blue haired boy that was Neptune Vasillias asked.

"We were, thinking about it!" Weiss replied happily. Crue turned to Ruby and made a gagging motion with his finger, causing the young girl to giggle.

"That's pretty cool." Neptune appreciated.

"You ladies all ready for dress up?" Sun questioned, giving each girl a finger gun, before realising Crue was also there. "And wolf…" Crue face palmed at the comment, feeling his glasses slide slightly.

"Pft. Yeah right." Ruby snorted.

"Laugh all you want." Yang began. "I'll be turning heads tomorrow night." She said confidently.

"What are you two wearing?" Weiss asked politely. " _Oh shit, what am I wearing?"_ Crue asked himself.

" _I can't wear my Wolf outfit, I'm going to fighting Cinder in that."_ His eyes widened beneath his glasses. " _I'm going to be fighting Cinder. Fuck."_

He tuned back into the conversation, hearing Yang confirming that she will in fact be going to the dance. " _You shall go to the ball! Wait… That's Cinderella. Double fuck."_ Crue sighed, mixing up several different fairy tales within his head.

" _And then there's the whole 'Is Adam Gaston or Beast'. Either way I'm killing the fucker."_ Crue thought with a frown. Yang left the room, leaving the five huntsman in silence. "So, what are you wearing Crue?"

The blonde froze slightly upon being addressed, turning to see the group looking at him expectantly. "No idea." He responded. "Should probably get on that." He walked towards the door, but heard Neptune calling out.

"Hey, you need a hand? I'm pretty good with suits, if I do say so myself." He bragged lightly.

"I'm fine Netpune." Crue responded, opening the door.

"It's Neptune!"

"I know what I said!"

…

"Is Neo free?" Crue was seated on a bench in Vale, sending a message to his 'cousin', Candlewick. " _Maybe I should've thought of a better pseudonym."_

"Why?" Came Roman's instant reply.

"Need/Want to rob a place." Crue texted back. He was running dangerously low on funds, and considering he was already breaking around fifty laws even talking to the renowned criminal, he saw no problem in breaking one or two more.

"Why do you want to rob somewhere?"

"Owners a dick."

Roman did not reply for several moments, before sending a short text. "I've robbed for less. I'll tell her you're looking for her."

Crue nodded happily, pocketing his scroll. He had changed out of his regular clothes and into his **Hound** outfit. " _Good thing the helmet is with me."_ He mused, feeling the cool metal pressing into his back.

He stretched out his arms, and rested them on the back of the bench. He was surprised when he came into contact with a shoulder. He looked to his side, seeing Neo in her Polly disguise, winking at him.

"Well, who is this lovely girl?" Crue asked sarcastically. Neo bat her eyelashes in mock surprise, before smiling, and leaning in for a kiss. Crue met her halfway bringing the psycho into a deep embrace.

Neo moaned into the kiss, a trail of saliva hanging from her mouth as she broke the kiss. She looked up to Crue with lustful eyes and a devious smirk. The Faunus could see what she was planning, and spoke quickly.

"Did Roman tell you about what I'm doing?" Crue asked. Neo nodded happily, leaning up so that her mouth was close to the ears atop his head.

"He told me you wanted to rob someone. I'm so happy you've decided to do that, Crue." She whispered, the sound causing Crue to gulp lightly and become hot under the collar. "And that you decided to involve me."

Neo placed a hand on Crue's lap, and steadily moved it upwards. Crue let out an awkward laugh, looking around the streets of Vale to see if there were any civilians. "No one can see us, don't worry." Neo whispered into his ear.

"My semblance isn't just my body you know." She rested her hand over Crue's bulge. "Right now, it's just the two of us." She hissed the last word into Crue's ears, gripping the hardening member in her hand.

Her words were true, for she had created a small dome that covered them, making the surrounding area practically invisible. If one were to look at it from a distance, they would see something akin to a shimmering mirage.

"Oh really?" Crue's demeanour changed instantly, realising that they could not be seen. He placed both hands on Neo's waist, and hoisted her onto his lap, the girl smirking deviously as she stared at him.

She moved her hand up, placing Crue's glasses atop his head, so she could meet his steely blue eyes. Neo melted at his gaze, seeing beyond his placid looking eyes, a burning intensity. One she craved to be directed at her.

Her wish came true, as she began to grind on Crue's hips, his eyes focusing in on her, as he grabbed her hips and pulled her in close. Their lips met, and Neo's hands trailed down to fiddle with Crue's zipper.

With a few swift moments, Crue's dick was soon exposed to the cool evening air. He shivered lightly, and broke the kiss between him and Neo. "You're sure no one else can see us?"

Neo nodded happily in confirmation. "Well then…" Crue placed his lips on Neo's neck, and bit down lightly. The girl moaned, her nails attempting to dig into Crue's back, but was halted by the thickness of the leather jacket.

She growled lightly, annoyed she could not mark him. "Easy there. Last time I almost got caught out cause of that." Crue whispered into her ear, causing her to shiver. Crue hefted up her skirt, and chuckled lightly at her lack of underwear.

"Going commando? So naughty." He cringed inwardly, the word not feeling right in his mouth. Neo did not share his emotion, apparently revelling in his dirty talk. If you could call it that. She angled herself above him, and lowered herself down.

She slid down, her mouth opening and her tongue falling out in ecstasy. Crue began slowly moving his hips up and down, only for Neo to put her hands on Crue's shoulders, halting his movement. Crue glanced up at her, and she smirked, as she began gyrating her hips, moving them from side causing the boy under them to let out a low moan.

"Fuck…" He breathed out. Neo smirked, seeing her actions were having an effect. She increased her pace, slamming herself down on Crue's dick repeatedly. The sound echoed slightly, reverberating against Neo's invisible barrier.

Crue grabbed her breasts, feeling them strain against the fabric. Neo let out a light moan as Crue began to grip and move them. They continued this for a few moments, content with the simple act. Neo also did not have any of her, 'equipment' on her, which made it a little more boring than their usual exploits.

Crue could feel himself nearing his climax, and so removed his hands from Neo's breasts, and placed them on her shoulders. Neo looked at him hazily, before realizing what he was about to do. Crue brought Neo down, completely filling her out.

Neo's mouth fell open and her eyes rolled back as Crue finished inside of her. She twitched lightly, convulsing from her own orgasm. "Well, that was something." Crue panted out. Neo managed to nod in agreement.

She rose up, Crue's soft shaft falling out of her and laying on its side. Crue quickly stuffed it back into his pants and zipped up his pants, as Neo sat down next to him. She let out a breath, and the world around them seemed to shatter.

Crue saw no difference in the surroundings, but to a few stragglers it looked as though two people had suddenly appeared on a bench. A person or two stopped and stared at them from across the street, questioning their own vision.

The people who looked at them eventually continued on, deciding it was a trick of the light or they simply had not noticed them at first. "I guess exhibitionism is now on my list of kinks." Crue breathed.

"I'm an enabler. Sue me." Neo responded sarcastically. "So, who do you want to rob again? And why?"

"The place where I first met you. 'Wares 2 Wear'. And he's a dick. And I need to buy a suit to the dance. Don't have money." Crue informed her quickly.

"I didn't think you'd be that kind of person." Neo said softly.

"There's a lot you don't know about me. A lot no one knows about me." Crue said, his eyes hardening as he placed his glasses back on his face. "A lot even I don't know about me."

Neo looked at him strangely, but did not question it. Crue was lost in the moment, remembering his less than legal activities from his time in his own world. As an orphan, he grew up rough, and had to learn to survive on his own.

He learnt quickly how to fight, granted the lessons were due to necessity. And without a steady job or good background, he dipped a toe into the seedy side of Dublin. He learnt how to pick pocket, granted while he was not as skilled at it, it was enough to help him get by.

He learned other tools of the trade during that time, a time he had hoped he wouldn't need to return to. "Alright, let's do it." Crue stated, staring at the darkening sky. Neo hopped up happily, Crue following suit with a small limp.

He saw the upcoming store, and frowned, recalling the actions of the night. He turned into an alleyway, one before the shop itself. He hid himself in the shadows and instructed Neo.

"Check if the store is clear." Crue told her quickly. Neo nodded, her appearance changing to a generic looking woman. She turned and entered the shop, leaving Crue to his thoughts. " _What is up with you?"_ He questioned no one.

" _I've never pulled off a heist like this before. And I don't know why you chose him of all people."_ Crue watched as a Faunus with a sweeping red tail stormed out of the establishment, an angered look on his face. " _Never mind..."_

Neo came back a short while later, nodding to him happily. Crue cracked his neck to the side, letting the joints pop. He took off his glasses, and put on his helmet. " **The Wolf is back in action."** He stated, Neo looking upon him greedily.

…

"Damn Faunus." The owner of the store 'Wares 2 Wear' grumbled. "Think they own the place." He heard the sound of his door opening and looked up to see a man wearing a leather jacket, and a jade green helmet.

"Can I help you?" He asked hesitantly. The aura that the man was giving off was one akin to a certain criminal that had robbed him a few months back.

"Why yes you can." The man replied, his voice echoing slightly due to the helmet. "I'd like, all of your Lien." The owner suddenly felt cold steel against his throat. He froze, afraid to move a single muscle. With only his eyes that he felt able to move, he glanced to the side.

A short woman with multi-coloured hair and eyes was staring at him, and had a pink umbrella that housed the blade currently pressed against his neck. For some reason, he could not see her clearly. As if she was made of water. She winked once, and then jabbed at the register. The man gulped, and slowly moved his hand to the register. "And please, don't hit the silent alarm. We're kinda in a hurry."

The owner swallowed hard, and lifted his hand away from the counter where said alarm was. He opened the cash register, and stepped back slightly. "Pleasure doing business with you." The helmeted man said, grabbing the Lien and placing it in a bag he grabbed from the other side of the counter.

The owner could only watch as his hard earned profits disappeared before his eyes. "Now, I believe that is everything." The man said, hoisting the bag over his back, and gesturing for his accomplice to come.

The woman pressed the blade against his neck one more time, before removing it, and joining the man. They both turned, and the owner let out a sigh of relief. "Actually…" The owner stiffened, looking at the two criminals.

The man was pointing behind him, to a set of shelves. "Toss us that, would ya?" The owner turned around in confusion, and the short woman was also looking confused. The owner realised what he was pointing at, and grabbed it from the shelf.

"You want a cup?" He asked unsurely, holding the protective item in his grasp.

"Yeah. Need to protect the jewels you know. Sure you can understand, man to man." The criminal replied, his accomplice looking between the two confusedly. The owner looked down at the armour, and back up to the man who just robbed him.

The man lightly tapped his foot, and the woman's blade was pointed at him again. The owner sighed and threw the piece at him. "Glad to see you're not an idiot." The man stated, reaching into the bag and taking out a blue card and throwing it back.

The owner caught it with a strange look. "Let it never be said I'm not generous." He said, hoisting the bag like he was some sort of jolly man delivering presents. "Oh, and tell your friends. **The Wolf** is making his mark."

With that the two left, leaving the man holding the small blue card in his hands. He looked down on it, and then back to where The Wolf had just left the scene.

"What the fuck just happened?"

…

"That went well." Wolf stated. He and Neo walked away from the heist, and turned into the alley where they had first met. Wolf leapt onto a sidewall, and used his semblance to climb up to the roof. Neo hooked a pipe that was stuck out of a wall, and flipped onto the opposing roof.

They met at the end of the alley and Wolf set down the bag. "I'm kinda disappointed honestly. Thought it'd be more fun." He set the bag down and began taking out the results of their robbery.

"It's no fun when they just do what they're told." Neo agreed, spreading out the cards. They had ended up with quite the haul.

"I don't think I've ever seen this much money in my life." Wolf commented, arranging the cards by colour.

"For a hunter in training, you're not very good at following the law." Neo said slyly.

"Wasn't supposed to be a huntsman." The Faunus replied quickly, frowning lightly. "Wasn't even supposed to be here." He gripped one of the cards tight.

Neo looked up at him confusedly, but did not comment on his words. They finished sorting the cards, leaving them sorted by colour and in two different piles. "What are you doing for the dance?" Wolf asked.

"Watching you." She replied, before seeing him look up. "That's what they told me anyway. Not like it'll actually happen." Wolf looked off into the distance, thinking of something.

"No. It should happen." He said, causing Neo to look at him confusedly. "That's like, the perfect alibi. While I'm stopping Cinder, the bitch," Neo giggled lightly, "you can say we were off doing something together."

Neo nodded in agreement, thinking of the possibilities. "I can see that working. But what kind of something?" She asked with a wink.

"The kind of something that'll piss off Mercury." Wolf responded with a wink of his own. Neo's smile grew, as she vibrated happily. "Now, let's go get something to look good in."

…

"Hey Crue." Ruby greeted, seeing the boy enter the dorm room they shared. The short girl lying on her bed, reading a book.

"Hey Rubes." The boy returned the greeting, leaving a bag near his set of drawers. "Where's everyone else?"

"Blake is off being emo. Yang is trying to fix that. Weiss is still working on the room." Ruby told him, hanging upside down off her bed to meet the boys eyes. "Where'd you go?"

"I went on a date with Polly." Crue lied. "Just a little thing in the park."

"Aww. That's cute." Ruby laughed. "You guys are cute. Everything is cute." She smiled.

"Someone seems happy." Crue laughed back.

"Yeah. I'm excited because I really think Yang will be able to get Blake back on her feet." Ruby jumped down from her bunk, Crue seeing she was in her pyjamas. " _Is it that late already?"_ They pink heart bottoms and black tank top with a heart shaped Beowulf on it.

"Why is there a Grimm on your shirt?" Crue asked confusedly. Ruby looked down at her top, recalling the design on it.

"There's a lot of Grimm stuff people can buy." She responded in an equally confused tone. Crue rapped his knuckles against his head. "Oh right!" She remembered the fact that Crue had amnesia.

"Well, people think that if they see Grimm in the context of something like this." She gestured to her chest. "They'll become sort of, jaded? Is that the word? And they won't be as afraid anymore. They sell Grimm dolls too."

"Makes sense." Crue muttered. " _Kinda like making lions and tigers into toys and stuff."_ "Have you got a date to the dance?" He asked, lightly cracking his knuckles.

"Uh. That kind makes me want to say no." She said, watching Crue's reaction. To her surprise, it turned to one of shock.

"Wait, you do have a date?" He asked incredulously. Then saw Ruby's face fall into a frown. "No- Wait- I just meant you didn't even seem like you were interested in the first place." " _She didn't have one in the show. So what the fuck are you up to?"_

Ruby squinted at him. "Well, I didn't want to at first. But I thought I could just go with a friend." She smiled happily, causing Crue to relax.

"Ok, who is it?"

"Emerald."

" _MOTHERFUCKINGCUNTSUCKINGTITTYSHITTING"_ "That's nice." _"PIECEOFMOTHERFUCKINGASSHOLEDOUCHEBAGBASTARD!"_

"Yeah. But it's not like a date or anything. She says she wants to dance with Mercury too. But I get the first dance with her." She smiled, unfortunately the smile did nothing to quell Crue's inner rage.

" _WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU!? WHY ARE YOU MAKING HER DO THAT?!"_ "Do you have a dress for the dance?" He asked casually.

"Yeah. I went into Vale earlier today with Yang. Kinda wish I had gone in later though." She said, jumping back onto her bed as Crue took off his jacket and shirt.

"How come?" He asked as he lowered himself down to the ground and scooted under Weiss' bed.

"Cause there was a robbery." *THUNK* Ruby felt a vibration through her bed. "Crue! Are you ok?" She peered over her bed, looking down to see Crue's head pop out from under Weiss bed, a red welt on his forehead.

"I'm grand. Just hurt my head." He rubbed his forehead and took off his glasses.

"Aww." Ruby sulked. "Do you want me to kiss it better?" Crue looked up at the younger girl with wide eyes. "What? It's what Yang would do if it happened to me."

" _If Yang saw Ruby kissing me anywhere, I would not be alive."_ Crue easily deduced. He decided to change the subject. "You said something about a robbery?"

Ruby's eyes seemed to light up. "Yeah! It happened an hour or two ago I think. It was on the news, cause it was the weirdest robbery ever recorded!" Crue raised an eyebrow towards Ruby, who continued explaining.

"They said that the robber walked in, and it wasn't a known one, asked for the Lien, and a piece of armour, and just left! I know it sounds weird that I'm being so happy about a theft, but I really want to fight him." She said, lying back on her bed normally.

"Oh? What was his weapon?" Crue asked, sliding back under the bed.

"He didn't even use it. But the weirdest thing is he paid for the armour he stole. I mean, it was with the Lien he stole, but still!" Ruby through her arms up, exasperated. "The owner said there was a woman with him, but he didn't get a good look at her, cause she was all mirage-y and stuff, so he might have just imagined her."

"So, this person robs a store, gives them some money back, and leaves? Without any police chasing after him?" Crue asked sceptically.

"Yeah! He must have ties in the police or something. Or he just got really lucky." Ruby theorised.

"Probably the latter." Crue said, then quickly added. "You said he wasn't known, right?" Ruby gave a sound akin to that of an agreement. "Well then he can't have much influence."

"Oh yeah! So, maybe he has a hypnotising semblance or something. Ooh, those can be dangerous. He could have made the shopkeeper see like, a bajillion blades hurtling towards him, or someone about to attack him!" Ruby noticed the silence below the bunks.

"Crue?" She asked cautiously. Crue, was having a mini panic attack due to the possibilities Ruby had just described.

"I'm fine." He said forcibly, trying to get images of what he knows to be the future out of his head. " _STOP IT!"_ He yelled within his head, not wanting to see anymore.

"Are you sure?" Ruby's worried voice came again.

"Yeah." Crue said, with a bit more conviction, and a little less force. "I'm fine. I promise."

"…Ok." Ruby finally spoke. Crue felt guilt eat at him like a ravenous beast at the tone of Ruby's voice. She sounded defeated, like she wanted to help, but didn't know how. The Faunus wanted nothing more than to reassure her, but that would just be adding on more lies.

"You know you can tell me stuff, right?" She said quietly, but Crue heard her easily.

"Of course I do Ruby." Crue told her honestly. Ruby did not reply, but Crue frowned, hearing her sniffle lightly.

"You know what?" The boy said, getting out from under the bed and standing so he could see Ruby. The girls silver eyes looked at him curiously. "Maybe a kiss would help it." He said, lightly poking his red forehead.

Ruby managed to giggle lightly, before reaching out and softly pecking Crue's forehead. "There we go. Now all the pain will go away." She smiled. Crue smiled back, the small gesture picking up the girls mood instantly.

"Goodnight Ruby. Sweet dreams." He told her, bending back down and going under the bed. "I really need to get a sleeping bag." He muttered.

Ruby let out a snort, hearing Crue's comment. "Yeah, you do. Night Crue." She yawned, pulling over her blankets. "Sweet dreams."

Crue smiled, feeling sleep begin to take him. He barely heard the opening of the door, indicating the others had finally arrived at the dorm. Crue gave half-conscious "Goodnights" to all of them, before falling asleep himself, hoping for pleasant dreams.

…

 _He did not get pleasant dreams._

...

" _ **Wrath. Awaken.**_ _"_

 _Crue walked alone on a street, his steps echoing in the silence. He looked around, feeling a strange sense of familiarity coming from it. He looked up the street, seeing a towering spire in the middle of the street. "The Spire?" Crue spoke, his voice echoing in the empty street._

" _I'm… home?" He said in disbelief. He quickly ran away, looking for a sign of human life. Unfortunately, he did not find a sign of_ _ **human**_ _life._

 _On the ground in front of him were four people, all of them with different ears atop their heads. Crue froze upon seeing them. "N-No." He trembled. "No!" He looked to his side, catching his reflection in a window._

 _He was still a Faunus._

" _ **Wrath.**_ _"_

" _Why…" The bodies said, beginning to rise up. "Why didn't you save us?" Three of them, all with red hair and fox ears, with scratches, bite marks and blood covering their body, stared at him. "Why didn't you save us D-"_

" _NO!" Crue yelled, backing away from the group. "NO! D-Don't do this to me!" He turned away to run, but found a taller male with wolf ears standing before him._

" _You let us die." He said, closing in on Crue. "If only you weren't so pathetic." The man pushed him to the ground, where Crue fell landing on something thick like tar._

" _ **Wake up. Wrath.**_ _"_

" _W-What is this?!" He exclaimed, trying to free himself from the gooey substance. He then heard something that chilled him to the core. A growl, one he had become all too familiar with at his time in Beacon._

 _He looked to see a pack of Beowulfs approaching him, or rather, the four people that simply stood, watching him sink further into the goo._

" _Even now. You're too weak to save us." The man said, before his throat was ripped out by one of the Grimm._

" _ **Wrath!**_ _"_

" _You'll never amount to anything." The woman said, before she was dragged into a pack of the beasts._

" _ **Awaken!**_ _"_

" _You're just a weak little boy, who can't save anyone." The taller girl stated, as a Beowulf's claw pierced her stomach._

" _ **WRATH.**_ _"_

 _Then, the smallest girl, with eyes that began leaking blood, looked at him as he sank beneath the black tar. She gestured to her side, where the mutilated corpses of RWBY and JNPR lay._

" _And you won't even be able to save them."_

" _ **WAKE UP!**_ _"_

…

*THUNK*

Crue hissed, hands going to his head and biting his tongue to keep himself from cursing. It was still dark in the room, or at least, he assumed it was. With his night vision, he could see properly, but could also hear the sounds accompanied by sleeping.

Weiss' light breaths, Yang's occasional snores, and Blake's, no matter how much she tried to deny it, soft purrs. Crue slowly got out from the under his bed, glancing to see if he had woken the person above it.

The heiress still slept soundly, if not a bit awkwardly angled. Crue turned away, opening the door gently and exiting the room as quietly as he could. Once the door clicked shut, he felt tears build up behind his eyes.

"No…" He whispered. "Not here." He walked away from the room, eyes staring at his feet as they padded across the carpeted floor. He noticed the floor was heated, but was too distressed to linger on the fact.

He didn't know where he was going, just that he needed to be away from the team. He opened a random door, and found himself looking out at Beacon, having exited onto a small roof. Crue said nothing as he walked across the roof, feeling the sting of the cold, realising only now that he was in just a pair of pajama bottoms.

He sighed, walking over to the edge of the roof and looking down. "Maybe I should…" He thought, sitting down on the ledge and looking at the ground below. "Not like I can actually save anyone…" He inched closer to the ledge.

"I don't even belong here." He said somberly. "Not in this school, not in this country, not in this world." A single tear fell from his eye, falling onto the ground that was meters below. "No one would miss me. I'm not even part of the canon."

Crue stood up, and teetered on the edge of the flat roof. He looked up to the sky momentarily. "I still don't believe in you. And the Author, well, he can suck a dick."

Crue closed his eyes, and leaned forward. "Crue?" A voice sounded.

Crue's eyes shot open in surprise, and he had to activate his semblance in order to keep himself from falling how he wished to. He turned around awkwardly seeing a startled looking Ruby.

"Hey… Rubes…" Crue said, standing back up on the roof. "What're, what're you doing here?"

"Wha-" Ruby blanked, before her face fell into a frown. "What am I doing here?! What are you doing?! What were you about to do!?" She exclaimed, tears at the corner of her eyes. Crue's heart broke at the sight of her crying, and the realisation of how his actions would affect her weighing down on him like a ton of bricks.

Crue muttered something, that was unheard by Ruby. "What!?" She asked, drying her tears.

"Bad dream." He said again.

"Oh." Ruby said softly. "Do, do you want to talk about it?" Crue shook his head. "Oh. Ok then." She said sadly.

"Why don't we talk about something happy instead?" Crue suggested, rubbing one of his arms. Ruby looked up to him suspiciously, before nodding.

"Alright." She said, walking up to him and sitting down cross legged. Crue joined her in posture, and they both stared at the view Beacon had to offer.

"What's your favourite food?" Crue asked.

"Cookies." Ruby spoke without hesitation, causing Crue to chuckle. Ruby smiled, hearing Crue being happy. "What's yours?"

"I like lasagna." " _Oh for the love of God tell me they have that here."_ Crue silently begged.

"Yeah. It's nice. But too much for me." Ruby nodded in agreement. "What's your favourite colour?"

"Green."

"But your stuff is all blue." Ruby said confusedly.

"Yeah. Weird, huh." He stuck his tongue out at Ruby. Ruby pouted slightly. "I don't have to ask to know yours is red."

"Actually it's pink."

"Wait what, really?"

"Nope." It was Ruby's turn to stick her tongue out at Crue. The Faunus sighed lightly, but smiled.

"Guess I deserved that." Ruby nodded in agreement while giggling. "Alright, do you play any instruments?"

The girls silver eyes looked to the night sky, trying to remember whether or not she was musically inclined. "I think I can play the bass. It's been a while." She said, poking her chin with her finger. "Do you play anything?"

Crue chose his words carefully. "I think, I can play the guitar, and ukulele." Ruby snorted in laughter. "What!?" Crue asked indignantly.

"Sorry! It's just, so small." She laughed, imagining Crue playing a tiny little guitar.

"Never heard that before." Crue muttered, before freezing and turning to Ruby, who was laughing once more. "Wait, you understood that?"

"Of course I did Crue." She giggled, wiping a tear from her eye. "I'm fifteen. And I'm sisters with Yang. Of course I understand all of her innuendos. I just pretend I don't for her sake." She explained.

Crue stared at her eyes, silver meeting steely blue. "I won't allow it." He said. Ruby blinked once.

"What?" She asked confusedly, before yelping slightly as Crue wrapped his arms around her torso and pulled her close.

"I shall not allow your innocence to be tainted!" He announced, causing Ruby to laugh loudly and squirm in his grasp. "The foul beast of lust shall not take my sister!" Crue's breath caught, and he felt Ruby stop moving.

"You think of me as a sister?" She asked slowly. Crue gulped once, and nodded. Then realised she couldn't see him due to the fact she was currently sitting in his lap, and staring out at Beacon.

"Yeah. I think of all of you like sisters." Crue's insides churned at the fact he was not lying.

"Well, then, that makes you my big brother, right?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah."

"Then, can I, tell you something?" She asked slowly, looking at her knees, her fingers coming together awkwardly.

"Of course Ruby." Crue replied softly.

Ruby seemed to wrestle with herself, trying to open her mouth and speak, but no sound came out. "Take all the time you need." Crue told her. Ruby smiled, and took a deep breath.

"I... don't like boys." She said slowly.

"Oh, me neither. They're jerks. The lot of 'em." Crue responded instantly, causing Ruby to laugh aloud.

"I like girls." She spoke with more confidence.

"Me too. They're awesome, aren't they." Ruby laughed once more, and Crue hugged her tighter. "But I know what you mean. And there's nothing wrong with that."

"Really?" Ruby asked unsurely.

"Of course. I don't see why there would be something wrong with it." Crue told her, the hidden question of 'why would it be wrong?' easily noticeable.

"I just, I haven't told anyone else about this." She said, much to Crue's surprise.

"Yang?" He asked, and Ruby shook her head. "Your dad?" Another shake. "Your uncle?" She began to shake, but then stopped, and slowly nodded her head.

"Uncle Qrow taught me how to use Crescent Rose. I could trust him with anything. And he never spills secrets. Even when he's drunk." Ruby said firmly, staring out at Beacon, almost willing herself to see the man in question.

"Well, I won't spill any secrets either." Crue promised, holding his hand out in front of Ruby and extending his pinky finger. "Pinky promise."

Ruby wrapped her own pinky around Crue's the difference in size between them almost comical. "Pinky promises are super important stuff." Ruby said seriously.

"I know. And I won't break it." Crue released the promise, and felt Ruby shiver. "We should get back in. You're cold."

Ruby looked ready to disagree, but another shiver caught her. "Uh, maybe coming out here in just my PJ's wasn't a good idea." She awkwardly rubbed the back of her head. "But, you're so comfy." She whined.

"Well, then, one way to fix that." Crue stated, beginning to stand. He held Ruby bridal style, as she wrapped her arms around his neck and snuggled into his chest.

"How are you so warm?" She complained, more about the fact he was able to keep comfortable while in a shirt, whereas she had been freezing her tush off.

"No idea." Crue replied with a smirk as he carried her back to the dorm. "My temperature regulation is weird."

"Your what?" Ruby asked.

"Feel my elbow." Crue instructed. Ruby blinked once at the odd request, but touched the Faunus' elbow.

"It's like ice!" She exclaimed, retracting her hand immediately. "How!?" She wondered, looking to Crue. The boy shrugged in response, and came to a stop outside the door to their room.

For a moment, neither huntsman in training said a word. "Did you bring your scroll?" They said at the same time. Judging from the fact that they both asked if the other had the device, they presumed that they were both without access to the room.

"Well." Crue said, settling down and leaning against the wall next to the door, Ruby now placed in his lap. "Looks like we're camping out for the night." He joked.

"We should totally go camping." Ruby yawned, curling up in a small ball against Crue. The boy grunted in agreement, wrapping his arms around Ruby and pulling her close, begining to remember the dream he had.

" _I've never reacted that badly to a dream…"_ He thought solemnly. " _And God knows I've had lots of them. But none of them were bad enough to make me want to jump of a building. What was different?"_

Crue sat there, trying to think through his dream. However, every time he remembered it, the emotions that the dream caused came back in full force. He frowned, creating creases in his skin. " _God damn it!"_

He sighed, letting his head hit against the wall gently. He could feel his fear and anger creep up his spine, but was dissuaded by the kind warmth leaning against his chest. He glanced down, seeing a peaceful look on Ruby's face.

He brought a hand up and lightly ruffled her hair, causing her to smile in her sleep. He put his hand on her back, and stared up at the ceiling, viewing beyond Beacon, to the stars above.

" _I will protect her. I will save her."_

" _ **And you will not stop me.**_ _"_

* * *

 _Man, it has been a while. Sorry about that. Time got away from me. As did motivation. But hey, I'm here anyway._ _So, bit more context towards Crue's old life. His life in our world. On Earth. In Ireland. On the streets._

 _Perhaps that is why he was so non-chalant about literal daylight robbery. Or, perhaps he slips into a different persona while under the guise of The Wolf. Who can say…? Well, I mean_ _ **I**_ _can, but I'm not going to._

 _Also, more smut. Yay? Although that was a lot more tame than last time. Whoops. Either way, if you've got questions, ask them, if you've got reviews, leave them, and as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	12. Dance Dance Interruption

" _Why do I feel like I'm about to die?"_ Crue wondered, as he cracked open an eye. What he saw was one Yang Xiao Long staring down at him, with her eyes red as blood. Crue felt a weight on his chest, and remembered the fact that Ruby was sleeping on him. " _That would explain it."_

"I can explain." Crue said slowly.

"You better do it fast." Yang warned, cracking her knuckles.

"We forgot our scrolls." Crue said quickly.

"Why weren't you in the room in the first place?" Crue gulped and lightly shook Ruby.

"Rubes. Ruby. Please wake up. Your sister's gonna kill me." He whispered to the sleeping girl. Ruby yawned adorably, and sat up from Crue's lap, rubbing one of her eyes.

"Oh. Morning, Yang." Ruby greeted, still somewhat groggy.

"Ruby. Why were you sleeping on Crue?" Her elder sister asked warningly. Ruby responded by lying back down across Crue.

"Cause he's comfy and warm." While this would have been a brilliant compliment any other time, for Crue it just made him more worried for his life.

"Any other reason?" Yang asked through gritted teeth.

"We forgot our scrolls." Ruby murmured, her face down in Crue's chest.

"Why weren't you in the room?" Yang asked once more.

"Bad dream." Ruby muttered. Yang's face fell into a concerning expression.

"Ruby, if you had a bad dream why didn't you tell me?" She questioned. Crue could sense a slight offense in the question, wondering why her little sister went to Crue rather than her.

"I didn't have the bad dream. Crue did." Ruby rose slightly, gesturing to the Faunus. Yang blinked, and looked to Crue. The boy refused to meet her eyes, instead staring at the ground.

"'S true." He murmured. Yang frowned lightly, looking between the two.

"Alright. But make sure it doesn't happen again. Or you remember your scrolls next time." She tried to re-enter the dorm, but found the door locked. She jiggled the handle, but the door remained closed.

Ruby and Crue both stared at the blonde, with smirks on their faces. "This didn't happen." Yang told them, rapping her fist on the door. A short moment later, a rather dishevelled looking Blake opened the entrance to the room.

She took one look at Yang, Crue and Ruby, and simply turned around, walking back to her bed and flopping down onto it, causing the bunk to wobble uncertainly.

The trio entered the room, Yang going over to her dresser and changing out of sleep wear into her regular clothes. Crue turned to his own dresser, and noticed the plastic bag lying at the side of it. He opened it, and then closed it immediately.

" _I left my fucking helmet and the money in plain sight."_ He glanced around, thanking his luck that no one had checked it. "Hey Crue, what's that?"

"AAH!" He exclaimed, holding the bag tight and turning to who spoke. Ruby eyes were wide in shock at his outburst. "You surprised me. It's my suit for the dance." He clutched where his heart was in mock surprise.

"Oh. Sorry Crue. Can I see it?" She asked politely, giving the Faunus a set of puppy dog eyes.

" _Must. Resist."_ Crue panicked. "You'll see it tonight at the dance. Sure you don't mind waiting?"

Ruby pouted, but nodded her head. "Alright. I don't mind." She said, turning back to her bed. Crue sighed in relief, scanning the room briefly.

"JESUS H. CHRIST!" He exclaimed, covering his eyes. "Yang! Put some clothes on!" He turned back to his dresser, trying to purge the image of a topless Yang from his mind.

"If it weren't for Polly, I would've sworn you swung the other way." The blonde told him. Crue said nothing for a moment, glancing over to where Ruby was, seeing she had frozen in place.

"Would that be a problem?" He asked the brawler.

"Wha?" She said surprised. "No! God no! I wouldn't think less of you for something like that!" Yang spoke quickly, afraid she had accidentally offended him somehow. Crue did not reply, watching for Ruby's reaction.

The girl slackened visibly, but the action went unnoticed by Yang, who was focused on Crue. "Good to know." Crue told her, smiling secretly. "I'm not gay though."

"Well, yeah. Polly is proof of that." Yang said, referring to his apparent girlfriend. "I like her. She seems nice." Crue had a sudden flashback to watching Yang and Neo fight on a certain train.

"Yeah…" Crue muttered distractedly. He shook his head clear of those thoughts, and got dressed for the day, putting his bag in the dresser. "So, what do we have today?"

"Nothing." Came the voice of the Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. Crue turned to look at Weiss, seeing the girl covered in a light blue towel, obviously having just come from the shower. He looked away politely.

"How come? The dance?" Crue asked, putting on his hunters clothes.

"That, and the fact it's Sunday." Weiss informed him. Crue blinked, grabbing his scroll from its place on the dresser and checking the date.

"Huh." He murmured. " _I've been here for almost a month. I wonder if time is relative."_ Crue thought back to his old life, remembering that he left sometime in January. His eyes widened as he realised something.

" _I'VE MISSED THE SEASON FOUR PILOT! MOTHERFUCKER!"_ He cursed out the 'Author'. " _DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MUCH I WAS LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT?! THE ANIMATION LOOKED SO MUCH BETTER!"_

Crue groaned, and let his head hit the dresser. "Crue? You ok?" Ruby called. Crue gave a grunt, holding out a thumbs up.

"Fine. Just remembering stuff." He told her. "I'll be outside." He rubbed his eyes, grabbing his sunglasses of the dresser. He exited the room, the hallway outside completely empty as opposed to a few moments earlier, when it was filled with himself, Ruby and Yang.

" _CRY. That'd be a terrible team name."_ He thought. " _Wait. Ruby'd be the leader probably. RYC. Rice. That's even worse."_

A door opened, but it was not the one he was expecting. "Oh. Hey Crue." Jaune Arc greeted, closing the door to his dorm behind him.

"Hey Jaune. What's up?" The other blonde greeted.

"Ah, you know, failing to get a date to the dance." He laughed awkwardly.

"Yeah. I saw your little," He gave an awkward wiggle of his fingers. "serenade." Jaune's face fell, and Crue sighed, shaking his head. "Where'd you get the guitar?"

"Oh. There's a music room. Did you not know?" He asked, scratching his head.

"Dude. I only got here like a month ago." Crue exasperated.

"Right, right, sorry." Jaune apologised. "C'mon, I'll show it to you." He nodded his head down the hall, gesturing for Crue to follow. The Faunus did so happily, curious as to what the room looked like, and what it contained.

For a short while, the two walked the hall, chatting about their studies and anything else that came up. Jaune led Crue to a small corridor, looking rather unused.

He opened a random door, the object in question creaking upon use. Crue followed him into the room, and let out a low whistle at what he saw. Instruments upon instruments hung upon the walls, some of them covered in dust.

"Yeah, no one really comes here. I doubt anyone else even knows about it." Jaune took an acoustic guitar from its stand, it appeared to be the only instrument there that wasn't covered in dust. Crue scanned the room, looking for another guitar.

Instead, he found something better, albeit smaller. He grabbed a ukulele off the wall, dusting it off and giving it a few test strums. "You can play that?" Jaune asked, surprised at Crue's choice of instrument.

Crue nodded, taking in a breath and blowing the dust of the acoustic. "Yeah. Been a while. But…" He began to strum **a tune**.

 **[Rude – MAGIC!]**

"Don't think this about you now." Crue told Jaune as he laughed, strumming the ukulele. Jaune laughed along, listening to Crue as he sang.

" _~Why you gotta be so rude?~"_ Crue sang, strumming happily. " _~Don't ya know I'm Faunus too~"_

After a short moment, Jaune joined in singing along and strumming his acoustic guitar. _"~Can I have your daughter for the rest of my life? Say yes, say yes.~"_ The two blondes sang, looking at each other with wide smiles, alternating between the chorus.

The song finished, the two of them clapping and giving bows to an imaginary audience. "That was awesome!" Turns out the audience wasn't as imaginary as they had previously thought. Jaune and Crue both looked up to see the members of RWBY and JNPR in the room.

It was Nora who made the outburst. "You two were like, so in sync! It was amazing." The ginger exclaimed. The statement was met with various other congratulations, even from Weiss.

"Perhaps you could perform at the dance tonight." Weiss suggested. " _Not gonna work for me. Unless it's after midnight."_

"I thought you got someone to play music though." Jaune scratched his head. The platinum haired heiress nodded in confirmation. " _Huh. A polite conversation between Jaune and Weiss. Never thought I'd see the day."_

"Correct. I have managed to hire a duo called 'Dust Punk'." The statement was followed by a squeal of joy from a certain reaper.

"You got Dust Punk!?" She exclaimed, hugging Weiss tightly, the girl becoming as red as her partners cloak.

"Get off me, you dolt!" Weiss shouted, prying the young girl off of her. "You're just lucky that was the only artist I could find on Crue's scroll happened to be bookable."

"I-You-What?" Crue stammered, not quite understanding what she had said. Weiss' eyes went wide as she slapped her hand against her mouth. It took a second for her actions and words to connect together with the Faunus.

"You went through my phone!? Scroll! Whatever!" Crue exclaimed, causing Weiss to fidget uncomfortably.

"O-Only your music. I couldn't think of what music to have at the dance, and I remembered that you had a lot on your scroll." She explained, the rest of the group looking at the Heiress with surprised eyes.

"And _why_ didn't you just ask me?" Crue questioned. He would have happily given her his extensive collection, if she had simply requested it.

"You weren't around. And I couldn't call you on it, because you left your Scroll in the room." She clarified quickly. "In any other circumstance I would have asked you Crue, but it was a decision that required haste."

Crue sighed, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and index finger. "You only went through my music?" He asked.

"Yes. I did not want to invade your privacy." Weiss spoke earnestly. "Any more than I already had." She trailed off.

"It's, fine." Crue eventually said. "How do I set a password on this?" He asked the group before him.

"Oh, let me show you." Jaune offered, taking out his own scroll and showing it to Crue. "First, go into settings…"

A short while later, Crue had successfully protected his scroll, with a password only he and Jaune knew.

"Why'd you trust Vomit Boy with your code?" Yang asked, as the teams made their separate ways away from the music room.

"Because I trust him. And he's a guy." Crue told her. "Guys always trust each other with that stuff. And now you have someone to ask if I'm not around." His reasoning seemed solid, leaving the members of RWBY to simply nod in acceptance.

"So, Crue, will you and Jaune be playing tonight?" Weiss asked hopefully. Crue considered the decision. He needed to stop Cinder, but there was no telling how long that would take.

" _I think she left just after midnight, cause that's when Ironwood showed up."_ Crue felt as though he was forgetting an important part of that plan. "What time would we be playing at?" He asked her.

"Probably around one A.M. . That's how long the band is scheduled to play. After that will just be a playlist, unless you choose to perform." Weiss explained the night, leaving Crue hopeful.

" _Well, I'll probably be finished by then."_ Crue nodded, causing Weiss to clap her hands together happily.

"Brilliant! Live performances done by students are supposed to be well liked." Everyone looked at the heiress strangely.

"Where'd you learn that Weiss?" Yang asked.

"From a movie." She answered, then saw the disbelief on everyone's faces. "I am allowed to watch movies!"

"Yeah but, you just don't seem the type." Ruby said. Weiss fumed, stamping her foot lightly.

"What movie was it?" Blake asked, trying to resolve the matter. Weiss managed to calm down enough to give her a proper answer.

"Academy of Rock. Starring Jacque Black." The platinum haired girl answered. Ruby and Yang instantly let out a noise of amazement, and began talking about how they watched it together as kids, and how much they loved the movie.

Blake, who had never seen the film in question, was the only one to notice that Crue had fallen, and was currently face down on the ground. He was muttering curses like there was no tomorrow, something about an author.

"Crue?" Blake questioned hesitantly, bending down and poking the downed Faunus. The boys head flew upward, now resting his chin on the ground rather than his nose.

"Yes?" He asked, a tone in his voice that Blake couldn't quite place. Exhaustion? Exasperation?

"Are you, ok?" She asked hesitantly. She was never good with reading other people's emotions. Why couldn't people just be more like books? They were so much easier to read.

"Fine." Crue grunted out, standing up and looking over her shoulder. Blake turned to see Weiss, Yang and Ruby talking animatedly about the movie she had mentioned, apparently wanting to watch it together at some point.

"I'm just done." He sighed. "I am, so done." He walked after the trio, leaving Blake to wonder what exactly it was he was 'done' with.

With a shake of her head, the Faunus jogged to catch up with her team and Crue, all of them planning to get changed for the dance as soon as they returned to their dorm.

…

In team RWBY's dorm, the occupants, which included the team itself, and the two females from their sister team, heard a knock on the door. The girls all looked to each other silently, their expressions asking if any of them were expecting company.

When no one answered, Yang took it upon herself to answer the door. Her white dress bounced softly as she strode across the room to open the door. She saw no one, until she looked down.

"Oh! Polly!" The blonde greeted, seeing the raven haired girl smiling up at her. Polly looked past Yang, waving at the other occupants. They all returned the greeting happily.

The shorter girl squinted slightly, before turning back to Yang, and placing to fingers behind her head, in order to imitate ears. "Uh… Crue?" Yang answered. Polly nodded happily. "Oh, well he's in there, getting changed with the other guys."

Yang pointed behind her, signifying that JNPR's dorm was being used for the males. Polly pouted slightly, wanting to see Crue. Yang noticed this, and lightly nudged her with her elbow. "Don't worry." She whispered down at her. "I managed to convince them to do a little, performance for us."

Polly looked up at Yang with an inquisitive glance. Yang said nothing, instead deciding to wink at the girl. The brawler nodded her head back into the room, inviting the girl to come in. She did so, lightly curtsying to humour the buxom girl.

Polly entered the room, allowing her dress to be seen by all. She wore a sleek black dress with streaks of white, which came down to just below her knees, and hugged her curves in a way that would have lesser men drooling after her.

The girls complimented her on her choice of attire, Polly doing so in return mutely. After a moment of applying makeup, tying up hair, and generally just making sure their appearances looked perfect, a sound akin to that of a wolf howl let itself be known.

Yang instantly grabbed her scroll, seeing she had received a text from Crue. "Crue says they're ready." She opened her music app, and began searching for a song that Crue sent her to play.

"Ready for what?" Weiss asked. Yang did not respond, but a smirk made its way onto her face. "Yang Xiao Long what did you do!?"

Instead of answering the question, the blonde brawler began playing the song. A guitar riff sounded off, and the door to JNPR's dorm opened up, as the lyrics began **to kick in**.

 **[Sharp Dressed Man - ZZ Top]**

" _~Clean shirt, new shoes, and I don't know what I'm gonna do.~"_ Lie Ren entered the room, lightly pulling on his collar, before reaching down and dusting off his slick black loafers. Nora almost fainted at the sight, having to be held up by Pyrrha and Ruby.

" _~Silk suit, black tie, I don't need a reason why.~"_ Jaune followed after Ren, fixing his sleeves, before adjusting his maroon bowtie. Ruby was now having to hold up both Nora and Pyrrha, the struggle evident on her face.

" _~They come runnin' just as fast as they can~"_ The occupants of the room redirected their attention from Jaune and Ren, back to the door, as the final male allowed himself to enter. " _~Cause every girl's crazy 'bout a sharp dressed man.~"_

Crue wore a midnight blue suit, with a pure snow white shirt underneath. Where Jaune and Ren both had bowties, Crue wore a tie of the deepest navy any of the girls had seen. He raised a single hand, a light sparkle off a pair of cufflinks catching their eye.

"So, do I know how to make an entrance or what?" He asked. And he got quite an answer. A black blur tackled him, throwing him off balance and causing him to fall onto his back. Polly then proceeded to pepper the Faunus' face with kisses.

Everyone minus the boy on the ground laughed at the action. "I'll take that as a yes." Crue grunted out, managing to kiss back. The two shared a peaceful moment on the ground, before it was interrupted by a certain blonde letting out a wolf whistle.

"Alright, lovebirds, get up and let's go to the dance." Yang instructed them, the two lovers regretfully parting and standing straight.

The party made their way to the Beacon Ballroom, Crue and Polly hanging in the back of the group. Crue bent down to his date in order to whisper into her ear. "Why were you there?"

Polly pointed up at Crue, who looked somewhat surprised. "For me?" He clarified. Polly nodded. "Why?" The petite girl gave him a look that Crue interpreted as 'Really?'.

"Right. Dating. That whole thing." Polly whacked his arm, causing him to flinch lightly. Crue responded with a light glare. Polly smirked back up at him and turned her head forward. The Faunus shook his head lightly, but looked ahead as well.

"You remember the plan?" He whispered. Neo nodded. She now had the location of RWBY's dorm memorised, and could teleport there at will. "Alright. Then let's have a good dance, shall we?" Crue held out his elbow for Polly to take.

The raven haired girl blinked, her eyes becoming pink and brown, and smiled up at Crue, taking his elbow. With that, Crue and Neo made their way into the ballroom.

...

"How long should we dance for?" Neo mouthed up to Crue as they swept around the dance floor.

"Until Mercury and Emerald come in, so they can see us leave." Crue mouthed back. They would have been talking normally were it not for the fact neither of them could actually hear the other over the beat of the music.

As they danced, they passed by Blake and Sun, who were sharing a form of waltz. Sun looked up when he noticed Cure, and smiled widely, giving him a thumbs up behind Blake's back. Crue smiled back, nodding to his fellow blonde Faunus.

" _He does not deserve the shit tumblr puts him through."_ Crue shook his head, turning back to Neo. " _I swear, if there's a male in RWBY that actually speaks, they piss themselves."_ His eyes suddenly became distant, unnoticed by Neo due to his glasses.

" _Oh God, how would tumblr react to me? Well, I'm guessing they wouldn't show half of what I do, mostly due to cursing, but also due to…"_ Crue looked down at Neo, who looked back up with a smirk. " _Maintain eye contact. Maintain eye contact. Maintain eye con- fuck."_

Even though his eyes were hidden, Neo had a fairly good idea of where Crue was looking. She pushed her chest upward, batting her lashes at Crue. The wolf Faunus gulped lightly, staring down at the girls mismatched eyes.

"Hey, Polly." Neo's eyes turned back to their disguised jade green, as the two dancers turned to see Ruby looking at them while tapping her fingers together.

Neo tilted her head to the side slightly, indicating she was listening to her. "Have you heard from Emerald? She's a bit late." The red reaper asked, meeting the shorter girl's eyes.

Neo frowned momentarily, taking out her scroll from her black purse and checking it. Crue leaned over to check the time. It was a quarter to eleven, and the time made Crue look around for the two antagonists.

He spied a head of green entering the ballroom, its owner going unnoticed due to the fact neither Ruby nor Neo could actually see them over the crowd. "She's down there, I think." In a burst of rose petals, Ruby had disappeared in the direction Crue had pointed.

"Why is she dancing with her?" Crue turned to Neo, looking at her seriously. She shrugged, then mouthed her response.

"I don't know. Cinder didn't say anything. Maybe she just likes her." Crue's eye twitched lightly. "Or, you know, an evil plot." Neo tried. Crue relaxed slightly, but his shoulders were still tense.

"Alright, let's go stop this bitch." He cracked his knuckles, and grabbed Neo by the hand, leading her towards the entrance of the ballroom, the girls face lighting up like a christmas tree. They passed by Yang and Emerald talking, while Ruby waited by patiently.

As they passed, Neo looked back to the trio who were watching them leave with wide eyes. She smiled back at them, pointing rapidly to Crue's back, then making an 'ok' sign with her hand. The three girls watched in disbelief as the couple disappeared around a corner.

"Mercury is gonna be so mad." Emerald half-laughed, half-complained.

"That's our Wolfy." Yang beamed.

"What are they leaving the dance for?" Ruby asked innocently to Yang. "It's not like there's somewhere else they could have more fun."

Yang froze, her mouth hanging open in a shocked expression. Ruby shrugged her shoulders. "Oh well. Come on Emerald! Let's dance!" She took the girl's hand and led her away from her paralysed sister.

The younger girl giggled as she began to dance with Emerald, the mint haired girl smiling awkwardly as she moved. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mercury trying to hit on some random girl.

Ruby spun her round, and when she saw Mercury again he was clutching his groin in pain, and the girl had disappeared. With a more genuine smile, Emerald began taking an active part in the dance, much to Ruby's enjoyment.

Perhaps this dance wouldn't be so bad after all.

...

"This'll come in handy." A woman clad in a black outfit muttered, as she stepped out from an elevator and over two unconscious guards. The woman wore a mask over her face, covering the majority of her features, but allowing her bright amber eyes to be seen clearly.

This woman was none other than Cinder Fall, and she had infiltrated the CCT Tower of Beacon. She came here tonight with a mission, and no one was going to stop her.

"Well, you look the part." A voice suddenly interrupted the silence of the scene, Cinder spinning on her heel immediately, determined to find out where the voice had come from. She did not have to search very hard, as the perpetrator made himself known.

A man dropped from the ceiling, falling to his knees and ending up in front of the closed elevator doors. He rose slowly, a deep emerald green cloak that came down to his calves swaying in an unseen breeze.

"But something tells me you're not here for the dance." The man spoke, his voice distorted by a jade green helmet. Cinder squinted her eyes at the newcomer, unable to recognise them or their voice.

She took a step backward, her hand going to a vial on her belt. "Who are you?" She spoke briefly. This man was an unknown, and that made her uncertain as to his strength, and she did not deal with uncertainties.

"Now, where's the fun in just telling you?" The man mocked, raising an arm to the sky dramatically, the sleeves of his cloak slipping down slightly, revealing a set of what appeared to be chainmail gloves, only they were coloured a dark green, like the rest of his outfit.

"Here's an idea, how about we take off our masks and introduce each other." He bowed lightly, angling his head downwards. "Ladies first." Cinder grabbed her dust vial the moment he stopped speaking, bringing it upwards and removing the cap.

She shot several crystals towards the intruder, but to her surprise, he spun on his heel, and a gust of wind appeared, scattering the crystals. Cinder said nothing, as she noticed that the cloak had begun to glow a lighter shade of green during the attack.

"You think you're the only one that can infuse Dust into clothing?" He asked rhetorically. Cinder grit her teeth, prepared to fight the newcomer. "But, I haven't answered your first question yet, have I?" Her opponent seemed to smile under that mask.

"Who am I? Well, that's a loaded question isn't it? I suppose I've got a few names. Over the years, I've been known as a leader, a monster, a demon…" He began raising his arms, stretching them out to his sides. "I've been branded a beast, but the name I choose now…?"

Claws suddenly shot out from what looked like the man's hands. " **I am The Wolf.** And I have a question for you." He pointed his claws at Cinder, who took a step back instinctively.

" **Are you ready?"**

 **[One For The Money - Escape The Fate]**

" **Are you ready? Let's go!"**

Without warning, aside from perhaps his words, Wolf lunged at Cinder, claws whistling through the air. Cinder jumped back, spinning round, Dust escaping from her suit, forming into a pair of dual swords that she held readily.

The Wolf stopped momentarily, looking at her weapons. "So, you're taking this seriously. Good to know."

He slashed sideways, Cinder bringing up her swords in defence. The meeting of the two weapons caused sparks to fly.

The two fighters leaned close to the other, staring each other down while their weapons clashed.

Cinder froze upon meeting his eyes. The steely blue eyes of her opponent, they did not belong to any human or Faunus. They held an almost animalistic rage, like none she had ever seen. Wrath and warning hid behind those eyes. Eyes that did not belong to any sane being.

Eyes that belonged to an animal. To a beast. To a Wolf.

Cinder leapt back away from the battle, the eyes of The Wolf boring into her.

A part of Cinder told her to run. That was a part of Cinder that she thought she had stamped out long ago. A part that she had purged from her body and mind. And yet, fighting this man made all those feeling and instincts rush back.

But fear of failure outweighed her fear of him. And so, she did what any female would do when faced with a threatening male.

Cinder brought her leg straight up, connecting it with The Wolf's groin. After she made contact, time seemed to freeze.

Then, through the slots of his helmet that allowed her to see his eyes, Cinder saw something unbelievable.

Glee. The Wolf looked genuinely thrilled at her action. And judging from the way his eyes were angled, he was wearing an enormous smile.

"IT'S A CUP BITCH!" The Wolf exclaimed, locking his legs together and trapping Cinder there.

Wolf brought his claws down diagonally, making contact with Cinder and sending her flying backwards.

She land behind a terminal, and stood up immediately, clasping her swords together into a bow.

An arrow formed from Dust, and she fired it at Wolf. He rolled to the side, dodging her arrow, before grabbing the hem of his cloak and giving it a sharp tug. A blast of wind hit Cinder, making her eyes water.

There was a crackle of static in her ear, and Emerald's voice came through her headpiece. "A party guest is leaving." Cinder growled as she shot another arrow at Wolf. He dodged to the side, rolling behind a terminal to avoid the explosion.

Using the noise to cover her conversation, she spoke. "I'm a bit busy at the moment." She seethed, watching at the man's helmet popped above the desk. She shot another arrow, and he ducked back down.

"It's Ironwood!" Emerald's voice came through clear with panic. Cinder froze in place. One man, one beast, or whatever or whomever The Wolf is, she could take. But add the General of the Atlesian Army into the mix? No thank you.

The Wolf jumped out from behind the terminal and slashed his claws at her from the distance. Six arcs of blue energy hurtled towards her, the noise drowning out whatever it was Mercury had said.

Wolf rushed up to her, as Cinder fired three more arrows simultaneously. He slid onto his knees, a pair of black jeans scraping against the floor, and dodged the first two. He brought his claws up and sliced the third projectile straight out of the air.

He leaped into the air and spun horizontally, bringing a single claw down on Cinder. The raven haired girl rose her bow to block the attack, her legs groaning in protest of the immense weight they just endured.

Cinder threw her arms up, disconnecting her bow and sending the Wolf flying backwards. He landed atop one of the terminals, crouching down and staring at her with those steely blue eyes. Those eyes that caused Cinder to feel rage, but not at The Wolf. Rage at herself, for being unnerved by his stare.

"I see you're not the quip kind of bad guy." He said, bending his legs down low and leaning forward. "A shame, that means you won't have any last words." Cinder grinded her teeth against each other as she charged towards her opponent, swords angled downwards, preparing for an upward slash.

Wolf coiled himself down, and sprung from the terminal, blue steel boring into amber. A moment before they could connect and begin to attack, their fight was interrupted, by a single sound.

*DING*

The two battlers turned to see the elevator door beginning to open. Unfortunately, due to the fact they were both looking at the elevator rather than each other, they collided.

There was a scramble of limbs as they disentangled themselves from each other. They separated, and rolled behind a set of desks, only the main terminal between them. Cinder looked at The Wolf with curiosity and hatred.

If he was supposed to be stopping her, why was he hiding too? "Helloooo?" She watched as The Wolf's hands clapped against his helmet in what appeared to be shock. Did he know this new intruder?

"Is anyone there?" Cinder met his eyes for a third time that night, and watched as he sprung up from behind his hiding place to meet this new person.

"Hi!" He said, almost happily. There was a noise of surprise, and then the intruders voice came again.

"You're The Wolf!" The intruder, obviously female, exclaimed.

"Well, yeah, but-" He was cut off when a gunshot sounded, and he went flying from his position. If it weren't for the tense situation, and the fact Cinder never laughed, she would have been guffawing.

"I'm not the bad guy here!" Wolf exclaimed, jumping back to his previous position and throwing his arms wide in a show of passiveness.

"Then who is?! Me?!" The woman asked incredulously.

"Nope. Her." Cinder blinked. She was staring at the pointed finger of The Wolf. She met his eyes once more, and she swore she could see a 'shit-eating grin' underneath that helmet. Her eyes narrowed as a flame lit behind them, and she knocked another arrow.

She let it fly, but The Wolf dodged it by leaping back to another desk. She could still sense that damned grin, and realised she had just outed herself to the new comer. She stood slowly, rising to meet the new challenger.

She had to look down a bit, as the wom- girl, that had intruded on the scene was not as tall as she expected. "Good!" The Wolf exclaimed, both females attention now on him. "Now, I'm getting the hell out of here before the General shows up."

Cinder's eyes widened. How did he know? Was he listening in on her broadcast? Did he have his own connections. Her questions were cut short when there was a sound akin to someone being kissed. The Wolf made the noise, and had thrown up a peace sign with both hands.

"Later!" He ran, leaping from table to table until he landed on the window, and began running up it. At the top of the window was an open panel, which he slid out of, before dropping like a stone.

Cinder turned back to the girl in red, and for a moment, they both just stared at each other. The moment was broken by the girl reloading what appeared to be a mesh between a scythe and a sniper rifle.

And then the fight was on.

...

Cinder rushed through a backdoor, discarding her mask as orange rings covered her body, changing her appearance from her stealth outfit into a sleek sparkling black dress, with a drey sash tied around her waist.

She exited the door, hearing a pair of soldiers rush in just as the doors closed. She instantly lost herself amongst the crowd, leaving the men in a confused state as to where the woman they were chasing disappeared to.

She scowled as she made her way through the crowd, people giving her a wide berth out of fear. She caught Mercury's eye immediately, and he nodded behind Emerald. The girl let go of her dance partner and turned to meet Cinder.

Whatever she was going to say died in her throat when she saw the expression upon Cinder's face. "I'm guessing it didn't go as planned." Mercury spoke hesitantly, as he took her gloved hands in his and began to dance.

"Whatever would give you that impression, Mercury." Cinder spoke through gritted teeth, practically shaking with rage. "There was someone else there." She informed him, and his surprise was evident.

"A huntsman?" He asked. Cinder shook her head.

"I don't know who he was. He called himself, 'The Wolf'. And he prevented me from completing the mission." Cinder could still remember those eyes. Eyes that seemed to stare into her very soul, while lacking it's own.

"The name sounds familiar." Mercury murmured. "I think I heard something about a crook with that name." Whatever he was going to say next was cut off by a voice speaking over the music.

"If Jaune Arc could KINDLY GET HIS CROSS DRESSING ASS BACKSTAGE, that would be lovely." Cinder watched as a boy with blonde hair and blue eyes, that was in a dress for some reason, coughed up his drink and sprinted to where the DJ's were situated.

Cinder turned back to Mercury with a frown. "Find out what you can about him. See if Roman or Neo know anything about him." She glanced around the ballroom. "Speaking of… Where is our little lovebird?"

Mercury frowned, Cinder managing to gain a small amount of pleasure from annoying the grey haired assassin. He grunted and nodded his head to the left. Cinder followed his direction, and saw Neo, or Polly, rather, sitting slouched on a chair, her tongue lightly hanging out of her mouth, and a girl with bright orange hair fanning her.

"It seems she and Crue are getting along swimmingly." Cinder said, her distaste for the boy only increasing after connecting the dots between Neo's expression and that, unfortunate, fact she learned about Crue.

"Can't we just off him?" Mercury requested, and as tempting of an offer that would be, Cinder shook her head.

"Unfortunately, no. He's become to well known. A sudden disappearance would spark intrigue." Her reasoning was logical, and Mercury begrudgingly agreed with her. "Where is he? Neo was supposed to be keeping an eye on him."

Mercury was about to answer, but the male in question decided to answer himself. "Hello Beacon!" The crowd on the dance floor halted their movement, turning to the stage, where Crue and Jaune were both standing behind the robotic DJ's.

A few people whooped and clapped at his words. "Now, before we start, can we all just take a minute to admire, this." He gestured to Jaune, who was still in his white dress. A few wolf whistles sounded out, causing the blonde to blush.

"I have never seen a man pull off a dress that well in my life." The hollering died down as Crue picked up an electric guitar, Jaune raising an acoustic. "Now, I have a request for all of you." The hall seemed to fall silent, as a drum beat began to sound.

" **Dance.** "

 **[Dance Dance - Fall Out Boy]**

The two blondes both began strumming their guitars, as Crue took a step towards the microphone.

" _~She says she's no good, with words but I'm worse~"_ He threw a wink to the crowd, the action directed at a certain petite raven haired girl, who was now up and dancing, her previous exhaustion forgotten.

Crue stepped back slightly as Jaune moved closer to his own mic. " _~Barely stuttered out a joke of a romantical stuck to my tongue~"_ A certain red headed amazon felt herself blush at those words.

" _~Weighed down with words too, overdramatic~"_ Crue rolled his eyes at the last word, faking annoyance.

" _~Tonight it's 'It can't get much worse" Vs. "No one should ever have to feel like' ~"_ Jaune began singing again.

The two blondes threw a glance at each other as they both approached their microphone.

" _~I'm two quarters and a heart down, And I don't want to forget how your voice sounds, these words are all I have so I write them, so you need them just to get by~"_

Jaune stepped back, as Crue raised his hand, and his pic, high above the strings of his guitar.

" _~Dance, Dance~"_ The crowd did exactly that, going into a frenzy as the boy sang. " _~We're falling apart to half time~"_

"~ _Dance, Dance~"_ A few people had to clear a circle around a boy with blue hair and goggles, as his 'dancing' was proving quite dangerous. " _~These are the lives you love to lead~"_

" _~Dance, this is the way they'd love, If they knew how much misery loved me~"_

Despite the depressing tone of the lyrics, people still danced the night away, forming a crowd around the stage, and no one was closer than Neo and Pyrrha, the two of them having to be held back during certain lyrics.

...

The song ended with both Crue and Jaune singing into the mics.

"~ _Dance, Dance. Dance, Dance. Dance, Dance. Dance, Dance.~"_ The song ended with a single strum, and the crowd went wild with applause. Crue and Jaune both held their guitars high, and performed a bow.

When they both stood straight, the Faunus was tackled by Neo, causing wolf whistle's and laughs throughout the crowd. Jaune broke down laughing at Crue, requiring his guitar as a crutch. Through his laughter, he made eye contact with his partner.

Pyrrha flushed, having been caught staring. Jaune smiled at her, and then winked, his deep blue eyes sparkling with kindness. She fell backwards, only being stopped from hitting the floor thanks to her teammates.

Crue finally managed to get a breath in, lifting Neo up, seeing her mauve lipstick smudged, and could only assume he had several lips on his face now. He grabbed the microphone and spoke. "Wow." He said, to a fair few laughs.

"That was something. And I'm not just talking about that little thing right there." His comment got him a whack over the head from Neo, and several more laughs. "Anyway, I think we're done here for tonight." He looked over to Jaune, who shrugged his shoulders.

There was an instant 'Boo', and then a chant. "One More Song. One More Song." Crue looked to Jaune, who shook his head.

"Ok, well, we hadn't planned for anything else. And this dude wants to dance." He slapped Jaune on the back, his skin becoming red due to the fact that it was actually his skin seeing as he was wearing a strapless dress.

Neo poked his shoulder, getting him to bend down as she whispered something into his ear. "Really?" His voice echoed into the mic. "You want me to play that?" She nodded happily. Crue sighed, turning to the crowd.

"I never should've let you listen to my music." He plucked his guitar and nodded to Jaune. "Get on down there ya blonde eejit." The leader of JNPR looked surprised, but leapt down from the stage all the same.

"Now, this comes as a special request." Crue said sarcastically, turning back to Neo, who smiled innocently. "And it is dedicated, to all the ladies out there. And by God are there a lot of you." Every female in the audience, minus a certain amber eyed half-maiden and her lackey, cheered.

"Can't believe I'm gonna play this." Crue muttered, as he turned his head to cough away from the mic.

 **[It's Raining Men - The Weather Girls]**

" _~Humidity's rising. Barometer's getting low. According to our sources, the street's the place to go.~"_ The crowd looked a bit confused, mostly wondering how this song was dedicated to the females.

" _~Cause tonight for the first time, just about half-past ten.~"_ As Crue sang, he noticed Neo sneaking behind him and secretly unbuttoning his suit jacket. It was also at that moment, that Crue remembered he was not wearing a shirt underneath due to, earlier activities.

" _~For the first time, in history, it's gonna start raining men!~"_ Neo tugged on the suit, somehow managing to take it off completely without tearing it, or without interrupting Crue's song. The crowd gasped, but instantly cheer.

" _~It's raining men!~"_ The crowd was much more into the song now, although whether that was due to the song itself or Crue's partial nakedness, he didn't want to know. " _~Hallelujah! It's raining men! Amen!~"_

Crue groaned internally in disbelief that he was actually performing this song without a shirt on. And the fact Neo kept staring at him did nothing to help. " _~I'm going to go out, I'm going to let myself get, absolutely soaking wet!~"_

Crue slammed his foot down to imitate a clap. " _~It's raining men. Hallelujah! It's raining men. Every specimen.~"_

He pointed to himself. " _~Tall~"_ To Jaune. " _~Blonde~"_ To Sun. " _~Dark~"_ And then to Neptune. " _~And lean.~"_

He stopped playing the guitar for a moment just to sing. " _~Rough and tough, and strong and mean~"_ He sang while performing various flexes. Several more hoots and hollers sounded out, and Crue took a moment to send a soft glare to Neo.

The girl in question was blushing heavily, her lips curled upward in a disturbing smile. Crue could only sigh, predicting a long night.

...

Crue let out a low breath as he finally finished the song. His performance was met with immense cheers. He took a moment to savour that, before speaking quickly. "Ladies and gentleman thank you for being my audience. I would love to say more but I fear I will be quite busy for the next hour or so."

To prove his point, Neo grabbed him by his tie, that was still tied round his neck, and dragged him backstage. He waved goodbye to his audience, as he disappeared behind a curtain. The crowd laughed, before realising he wasn't coming back.

After a few awkward coughs, music from Weiss' playlist began to flow from the speakers, sparing everyone from any awkwardness. The members of team RWBY and JNPR congregated together, although they were wondering where a certain red headed reaper was.

"Maybe she went back to the room." Weiss suggested. "She wasn't particularly looking forward to this anyway."

Yang nodded, agreeing with her suggestion. "I guess that makes sense. But, just a part of me is worried." The blonde sighed. Blake frowned lightly, patting the back of her partner.

"Boys and girls." A voice came over the speakers. They recognised it as their headmaster. "While this has been a lovely dance, no doubt thanks to the tireless work of team RWBY." There was a small pause where the crowd clapped, Weiss and Yang bowing.

"It is also past your bedtime. And those of you from Beacon are receiving your missions tomorrow. So it would be beneficial for you to be well rested. Thank you." The headmaster ended his speech, music flowing back through the speakers.

Slowly, people began filtering out of the room, leaving scarce few couples, still slow dancing to the music. As they left, a certain redhead lingered, staring at the other couples longingly. Her partner, and leader, noticed this.

"Hey, I'll catch up." He told the group, as he jogged back to Pyrrha. He placed a hand on her shoulder, startling her slightly. The others could not tell what he was saying, but whatever it was made the amazon blush heavily.

" 'Bout time he noticed." Yang stated, leaving the ballroom with a smirk. She was soon followed by the rest of the group, most all of them with a smile of some shape or form.

Weiss turned back momentarily, seeing Jaune and Pyrrha dancing together, holding each other close, smiling at each other. She shook her head lightly, as a flash of blue ran through her mind. She followed after her teammates and neighbours, deciding in her heart that she would focus on academics, and not chasing boys.

And oh, what a liar the heart is.

* * *

 _Man, that last line got really deep all of a sudden. The fuck was that about? Hell if I know. All I know, is that Crue successfully stopped Cinder's plan. If you really want specifics, I can bring it up in the next chapter._

 _But aside from that, music, moves, and motives. All of these were in this chapter. Actually, I'm not too sure about that last one. I was just going for the alliteration. Also, eyes are always significant in Remnant. And would you look at that? Cinder has never actually seen Crue's eyes._

 _How curiously convenient._

 _Anyway, that's all for me. I hope you enjoyed, let me know if you did, and as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	13. Pain Train

"Ruby? Where are you going?" Yang asked, seeing her sister attempt to sneak out of the room. The girl in question flinched, turning around slowly.

"Um. I have to go talk to Ozpin." She explained. The other members of her team were now staring at their leader.

"Why do you need to talk to Ozpin?" Weiss asked, stepping forward.

"Um. Uh. It's about… what happened last night." She backed up, grabbing the handle of the door.

"What!? What happened!?" Yang exclaimed, closing in the distance between them.

Ruby let out an 'Eep' and threw open the door. "I'm not allowed tell you!" She shouted, running down the hall towards the headmaster's office.

Yang let out a sigh as she closed the door. "What's gotten into her? And why's she in a rush to go to Ozpin?"

"She said something happened last night. Maybe it was while she had left, and it wasn't something good." Blake theorised.

"Well, Ruby did disappear for half the night. And knowing her luck, it wouldn't be farfetched to assume something had happened." Weiss agreed.

"Is Ruby gone?" Came a new voice. Everyone shivered slightly, before recalling that they had another person in the room. Granted that person was under a bed.

"Yeah." Yang told Crue. "Why?"

"Cause I really don't want her to see this." The Faunus replied, sliding out from under the bed and standing up. To say that each girl turned red at what they saw would be an understatement.

Hickeys. Bruises. Lipstick. Scratches. They all littered his body, and that was just his front. They were glad he had trousers on, as there was a trail of purple kisses leading down towards the belt. And they didn't want to see how _that_ area was treated.

"Yeah. You should see her." He laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head, before wincing and shaking his hand. "I'm going to have a shower." He walked to the bathroom, inadvertently showing the girls what was on his back.

Three letters, written in deep purple lipstick. "P.O.P" Yang said slowly, after Crue had closed the door. "What does that… OH MY GOD!" The blonde began laughing uncontrollably.

"What? What does it mean?" Weiss demanded, her raven haired teammate also looking confused.

"P.O.P stands for 'Property Of Polly'." Yang told them through watery eyes. Blake let out a snort, before covering her mouth to prevent any more noises of surprise.

Weiss opened and closed her mouth repeatedly, not believing what she was hearing. "How-Why-What?" The heiress tried to speak.

Yang laughed at her teammate's expression. "Man, Polly is something. She puts your books to shame, Blake."

The raven haired Faunus let out an indignant squawk at the insult of her prized literature. "Oh please. Ninja's of Love would have Polly blushing."

"Can we stop talking about inappropriate things please!?" Weiss begged, her face only increasing in redness.

The sound of a door opening broke the girl's attention. "That's better." Crue sighed in relief, exiting the shower room, completely free of lipstick, some steam billowing out after him, nothing but a towel to cover his lower half.

With a thick 'THUD' Weiss Schnee fainted backwards, leaving Crue staring at the girl with wide eyes. "Please tell me that wasn't my fault."

"Nah. Don't worry Wolfy. It wasn't _completely_ your fault." Yang told him. "She was just getting all hot n' bothered from our, conversation topic." The way she specified her words made Crue uneasy.

"What was your topic?" He asked slowly, before shaking his head. "You know what. I don't even want to know." He walked to his dresser, tiptoeing around the fallen heiress.

Once he had his clothes in possession, he re-entered the bathroom. Once he was out of the room, Weiss sat up from the ground. "I despise all of you." She said shortly, burying her face in her hands.

"What? What we do?" Yang asked in a joking tone. Weiss let out a short scream, muffled by her hands, before falling back down onto the ground.

"Didn't you get a package or something?" She asked, staring up at the ceiling.

"Huh? Oh, yeah." Yang recalled, grabbing the cylindrical cardboard from her desk. "It came from Patch, so my dad must've sent it. I'll open it when Ruby gets back."

"I wonder what she's talking about." Blake mused idly.

…

"Come in." The voice of Professor Ozpin instructed the person who wished to enter his office. The other occupants of the office included General James Ironwood, and Glynda Goodwitch.

"Sorry it took so long." Ruby apologised, stepping into the grand room. "Someone accidentally hit all the buttons on the elevator on the way up here. It wasn't me."

"Thank you for coming, Ruby. How are you feeling?" Ozpin questioned his student.

"Ok, I guess. I'd feel better if my bad guy catching record wasn't 0 for 4." She joked lightly. When all she got in response was unamused stares, she amended her statement. "Ok so that's the tone we're going for, got it."

"Ruby." Ironwood stated. "I feel it's appropriate to let you know that I think was exactly what being a huntress is all about." He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "You recognised a threat, you took action, and you did the very best you could."

"Thank you sir." The small girl responded politely.

"Now." Ozpin said, getting the conversation back on track. "The general here has already informed us of the events that, transpired last night. But now that you've rested, we were wondering if you had anything to add."

"Was anyone else with her?" Goodwitch asked. "Did she look familiar to you at all?"

"Well, aside from The Wolf, no one else was-" "The who?" Ironwood cut off Ruby with a raised eyebrow.

"The Wolf." Ruby repeated.

"There was a wild animal in the CCT?" The Deputy asked.

"No, The Wolf, he's a, criminal. I think." She muttered.

"There was another saboteur there?" Ozpin asked, meeting his fellow educator's eyes.

"Well, that's the thing." Ruby spoke slowly. "I don't think he was doing any, saboteur-ing. If anything, it looked like they were fighting each other."

"How so?" Ironwood asked.

"Well, what he said was kind of weird. He could've stayed hidden, but instead he sorta, jumped up and said 'hi'." She saw the looks on the teacher's faces. "I'm not kidding. He literally said 'Hi!'."

"Curious." Ozpin mumbled. "Was there anything else?" He met Ruby's silver eyes, his own looking pensive.

"Well, he said he wasn't the bad guy." Ruby told them. "And he said that, after I shot him. And then he pointed out the woman. She shot an arrow at him, which is why I think they were fighting before I came in."

"And, this woman. What do you remember of her?" Glynda questioned.

"I, I don't know. She was wearing a mask, and she didn't say anything to me, but I know she fought with glass." Ruby recounted the events of the previous night. "I don't think that was her semblance though. Her clothing lit up whenever she attacked."

"Save for the glass," Goodwitch spoke again. "that sounds like the woman I fought the night we met Ruby."

"Embedding Dust into clothing is an age old technique. It could have been anyone." Ironwood said, moving towards Ozpin.

"Wait." Ruby began, causing the General to face her. "You think this girl is connected to Torchwick and the White Fang?"

Ironwood and Goodwitch both turned to the headmaster, waiting for him to answer. "It's possible." He said, stroking his chin. Ruby recalled what Blake had told her of the White Fang meeting. "But, we still lack the required evidence to link the two together."

"Actually I-I think I remember her saying something about a hideout or something, in the South-East, just outside the Kingdom." Ruby said, directing a thumb over her shoulder to indicate its direction.

Ozpin grew a small smirk. "Interesting."

"I thought you said the intruder never-" "Thank you for your cooperation Ruby." Ozpin cut across Goodwitch. "Why don't you go and spend some time with your team and Crue? You have a big day ahead of you."

"Anytime." Ruby replied happily, starting to walk back towards the elevator.

"And Miss Rose," Ozpin called to her, causing the young reaper to turn back to her headmaster. "please try and be, discreet about this matter."

"Yes sir." She told him.

Once she left, the teachers turned to look at one another. "Well, there we have it." Ironwood said, walking over to the window and resting his arm on it. "We send as many troops as we can to the South-East. Find out exactly what's going on and eradicate any forces that stand in our way."

Glynda frowned, throwing up her arms in exasperation. "Why must your answer to everything be a triumphant display of military bravado?" She waved her crop at him. "You treat every situation like it's a contest of measuring d-"

"Glynda!" Ozpin warned, throwing up a hand to stop his employee's tirade.

"Well he does." Glynda did not falter, crossing her arms in a huff.

"I fear you've become too familiar with our dear Mr. Cullen." Ozpin told her with a smirk. Glynda blushed lightly, an action not unnoticed by Ironwood. "But she's right." He turned to the General.

"As much as I too would love to end this situation once and for all, we must remember that this may go beyond Vale, beyond Beacon." The Headmaster spoke with wisdom. "And if this truly is part of some master plan for which we know not the final move, we mustn't be so bold."

"Nor can we risk the spread of panic." He ended his speech on a warning note.

"I have served you faithfully for years." Ironwood said grimly. "But if you mean to tell me that your plan is to really hold the defences and wait-" "It is not!" Ozpin stood from his chair with a glare on his features, his voice echoing in his office.

His expression softened as he began to speak. "You're a General, James. So tell me, when you prepare to go to war, which do you send in first? The flag-bearer, or the scouts?"

Ironwood said nothing, deciding instead to turn and look out of the window once more. "What of this, 'Wolf' character? Do we know anything about him?" For once, Ozpin could say nothing.

"Miss Rose said he was believed to be a criminal." Goodwitch answered for her employer. "That could signify he has a connection to Torchwick."

"Or, it could be a ruse." Ozpin laced his hands in one another, hiding his mouth with them.

"A ruse? How could being a criminal be a ruse?" Ironwood demanded.

"Tell me James, would you expect a criminal to be on the side of good?" Ozpin asked.

"Of course not." The General responded, before understanding what Ozpin meant.

"Perhaps we should try and make contact with The Wolf, and determine whose side he is on." Ozpin's eyes were squinted, thinking about this new player in the game.

"And how do you propose to do that?" Goodwitch asked.

Ozpin smirked behind his fingers. "Well, I understand that in nature, wolves and ravens have an interesting relationship. And while we do not possess a raven, we do have a crow."

…

"Well that was a risky move." Weiss stated, referring to Ruby's daring decision to mention what they had learned.

"No," Blake disagreed. "I think you handled it well."

"I hope so." Ruby had her head held low. Both Yang and Crue instantly stepped forward to place a caring hand on each of her shoulders.

"I'm sure everything will be alright Ruby." Her sister told her, lightly eyeing Crue.

"Yeah. You managed to point them in the right direction." Crue comforted, meeting Yang's eyes behind his glasses.

"Oh!" The blonde suddenly exclaimed. "I know what'll cheer you up." Yang strode over to her desk, where the package from Patch was sitting unopened.

"What is it?" Ruby asked, Crue removing his hand from her shoulder in equal confusion.

" _I feel like I should remember this. Was it actually part of the show or…?"_ He watched as Yang grabbed the package and spoke.

"I don't know yet. Dad sent it to us. I thought we could open it together." She showed Ruby the cardboard tube.

"Oooh. Something from home." Ruby squealed. Using her semblance, she dashed over to her sister and climbed atop her, trying to reach the package. Yang shook the tube once, and a black cylinder fell out of it with a 'thunk'.

It began to shake lightly, before jumping up by itself and taking form. The contents of the package turned out to be a small corgi with black and white fur. Crue's eyes widened as he skyrocketed, latching onto the ceiling with his semblance.

" _BAD! BAD! BAD! BAD!"_ His mind repeated to him, as he watched Ruby pick up the dog and begin nuzzling it. His instincts blared at him, telling him to avoid the creature at all costs. He felt a growl rise up in the back of his throat, and the corgi turned to meet his gaze.

It barked at him, so he barked back. The members of RWBY watched with awe, and slight confusion, and the verbal shouting match between the dog and the Faunus. "Crue?" Ruby asked with hesitation.

Her voice seemed to snap Crue out of his strange daze. "I, was just barking at him, wasn't I?"

"Yeah. Why'd you bark at Zwei? Look how cute he is." Yang hoisted the dog up, bringing him closer to Crue. The Wolf Faunus hissed, and scrambled over the ceiling, joining Blake on her place atop Ruby's bed.

The amber eyed girl looked at Crue with sympathy. "I don't like him either." She whispered. Crue nodded, taking some solace in the fact he wasn't the only one currently terrified of this corgi.

A voice sounded on the intercom, instructing the students to make their way to the amphitheatre. Yang let Zwei fall from her grasp, as she walked over to the package.

Once the dog's stubby little legs touched solid ground, it made its way over to Weiss' bed, and began yipping at the two higher up on it. Blake and Crue both moved back from the edge of the bed, further away from the evil animal.

The beast's focus turned to its owner, once Yang had mentioned the word 'food'. Zwei plopped down next to her legs, as a stream of dog food cans fell from the package from their father, along with a can opener.

Crue and Blake both took the opportunity to exit the room, Crue leaping onto the wall and springing to the door, and Blake jumping from the bed to a table to the door.

Once the two Faunus were outside of the room, they slid down the walls with sighs of relief. "Jeez guys, he's just a dog." Yang said in disbelief.

" _Wait. She's right. WHY THE FUCK WAS I FREAKING OUT?!"_ Crue realised. " _I don't have a problem with dogs, you fuckstick. Why the hell did you make me afraid of a FUCKING CORGI?!"_

"I have absolutely no idea." Crue muttered. "My instincts just said 'bad'." The excuse sounded lame, even to him.

"Instincts?" Yang questioned.

"I don't know! Something just, rubbed me the wrong way." Crue scratched his head. He felt something jostle him, and saw Weiss holding up a pair of bags to him and Blake.

"You forgot these inside." Crue took his happily. It was a regular dark green knapsack, but it's what on the inside that counts. And what was inside that bag in particular? A certain outfit that Crue believed he should always keep on hand, as well as some, certain bargaining chips.

"Now, let's go." Weiss stated. And like that, they were off to the amphitheatre. " _We're off the see the wizard. The wonderful wizard of Ozzzzpin."_ Crue hummed in his mind. " _I wonder if Neo'll be there."_

The group made their way to the amphitheatre, Crue dropping his bag amongst all the others, and stood in the Beacon students group. Ruby joined them after a moment, falling into line beside her teammates.

Crue stood to the side, RWBY and JNPR off to his left. His eyes scanned the crowd for raven hair, but came up with nothing. " _Where is she?"_ Crue wondered. He then realised that there was another set of raven hair missing, along with green and grey.

" _And where are the others?"_ He was worried, mostly because he was currently in the unknown. " _She wouldn't try to hack the CCT again, would she?"_ Crue shook his head. " _No, no. That's stupid. Ironwood would have put much more security now, and it's probably being monitored."_

With a now relieved mind, he watched as Ozpin took to the stage. "Today we stand together, united." He spoke into a microphone, the crowd falling silent at his words. "Mistrel. Atlas. Vacuo. Vale. The four kingdoms of Remnant."

"On this day nearly eighty years ago, the largest war in recorded history came to an end. It was a war of ignorance, of greed, and of oppression." Crue could remember hearing this speech for the first time, and thinking about how the community would react.

"A war that about was much more than where borders fell or who traded with whom. But about the very idea of individualism itself. We fought for countless reasons, one of which being the destruction of all forms of art and self-expression."

"And as you all are well aware that was something many could not stand for." Crue nodded in turn, imagining how his old world would react to the same premise. "As a result, those who opposed this tyranny began naming their children after one of the core aspects of art itself."

"Colour." " _Wait."_ Crue suddenly thought. " _Does my name follow the rule? I don't know what 'crue' means, maybe something in a different language? Cullen kind of sounds like 'culling', as in killing. Holy shit, my last name means reducing a population. That's metal as fuck."_

"It was their way to demonstrate that not only would they refuse to tolerate this oppression, but neither would the generations to come." Ozpin continued on. "And it was a trend that is held to this very day."

"We encourage individuality, expressionism, and unity. Through diversity. As I have said, today we stand together, united. But this bond cannot exist without effort." Ozpin told the crowd before him.

"Which is why today while the rest of the world celebrates peace, Huntsman and Huntresses will work to uphold it." The sombre note echoed through the crowd. "As first year students, you will be tasked with shadowing a professional huntsman or huntress, on a mission."

As Ozpin spoke, many translucent blue screens began popping up near the walls of the amphitheatre. "Some of you may be taken out of the kingdom for several days. Others may work within the walls for the rest of the week."

"But no matter which path you choose, remember to be safe, remember your training, and remember to do your very best." " _Like no one ever was. BAM BAM BADUM- Oh the speech is over."_ Crue was brought out of his music filled head when people began applauding Ozpin.

"This is perfect!" Ruby exclaimed, as the students around them dispersed, all of them looking for a mission to suit their skills. "All we have to do is shadow a huntsman working in the South-East."

"Yeah!" Yang said, stepping forward. "We'll follow them around by day and give them the slip by night." Crue was laughing internally. " _Good luck doing that when it's fucking Oobleck."_

"Let's check "Search and Destroy"." Weiss suggested. The five began walking towards a screen, as a Beacon student had just left it, apparently dissatisfied with the options.

"Here we go. Quadrant five needs Grimm cleared out." Ruby read the mission aloud.

"Well, it's in the South-East." Blake agreed.

"Sounds perfect!" Yang said, as Ruby tapped on the screen. A small box popped up, requesting her to enter the teams name. After she typed in RWBY, large red text appeared saying: "MISSION UNAVAILABLE TO FIRST YEAR STUDENTS"

"Wonderful." Weiss said sarcastically.

"Any other ideas?" Blake asked.

"We mail ourselves there." Ruby suggested, her arms stretching wide for emphasis.

"Well that's one option." The five students turned to see their headmaster approaching them from behind the screen, a teachers scroll in hand. "Unfortunately, we determined that the concentration of Grimm was too extreme for a first year team of four."

"What about a team of five?" Crue asked, stepping forward slightly with a light smirk. The others all looked at Crue with wide smiles, then to their headmaster hopefully.

Ozpin smiled beneath his tiny glasses. "Well, that would increase your chances. It seems that particular region is rather popular. In fact I have the sneaking suspicion that the four of you will make your way there no matter which job you choose."

Yang, Blake and Weiss all turned to stare at their leader, who was rubbing the back of her head awkwardly. Crue let out a cough, directing Ozpin's attention to him. "Ah, my apologies. The _five_ of you."

"Whatever makes you say that?" Crue asked him.

"I'm still curious how as to how you all found yourselves at the docks last semester." Ozpin answered, redirecting his attention to the females who were meant to be there. "I'm interested to know how you really learned about a 'hideout' in the South-East."

"And I certainly wonder why witness reported seeing robots and rose petals and a cursing wolf in a dance club some time ago." Ozpin spoke, but his smile betrayed the seriousness.

"Must be something in the water." Crue suggested, resting his arms behind his head.

Ozpin threw him a smirk. "I doubt I'll ever find the exact answers I'm looking for. So, how about this." He compromised, bringing up his scroll. "Instead of waiting for you all to break the rules, why don't we just bend them?"

The screen flickered, before reappearing. Even though there was no noticeable change, it was obvious that Ozpin had changed it so that they could go on the mission. " _Troll Ozpin strikes again. Wait… That was canon Ozpin!"_

"We won't let you down." Ruby told the man who let her into Beacon. "Thank you professor."

"Do not thank me for this." Ozpin warned. "Teamwork and persistence have carried you far, but you must understand, the things that await you beyond the protection of the kingdom will not care."

"Stay close to your huntsman at all times. And do exactly as he says. He will be leading you on this mission. And he can have you sent back to Beacon if he finds your skills to be unsatisfactory." Ozpin walked off, leaving the grim tone hanging in the air, the members of RWBY looking at each other questioningly, apparently second guessing themselves.

"Good luck." Ozpin popped his head back in, before disappearing once more. With that, the five students looked at each other, and made their way out of the amphitheatre.

"Well that wasn't exactly uplifting." Yang said what was on all of their minds.

"But it's the truth." Blake countered.

"It's gonna be tough, but I know we can do it." Ruby cemented her belief. Crue was about to comment on her words, as he was standing next to her, but a rough shove caused him to almost lose balance.

"Hey! Team CFVY's back!" A student ran past him, inadvertently knocking into him. He watched the student go, seeing the team in question walk back to the auditorium.

"Velvet!" Crue jogged over, catching up with the team. The Rabbit Faunus turned upon being addressed, her face breaking out into a light smile once she saw who it was. "Are you ok?"

"Hi Crue." She told the tall blonde. "I'm fine, I had Yatsuhashi to look out for me." The giant of a man walked past, his eyes briefly lingering on Crue.

Crue met his eyes behind his glasses, and they both shared a brief nod. Yatsuhashi continued on after his team, as Weiss spoke. "Your mission was supposed to end a week ago. What happened?"

"N-Nothing happened." Velvet told her. "It was just, there were so many." She saw the looks on RWBY's faces. "Oh but don't worry, you first years are just shadowing huntsman so you should be fine."

She smiled at them, trying to reassure them. "And you've got Crue to look out for you." She nodded to the Faunus, causing him to blank and blink, looking at Velvet oddly. Before he could question her words, Velvet continued speaking.

"I should go. Be safe, ok?" She requested, before walking away after her team. It left the group in silence, all of them, minus one, wondering what they would encounter on this mission.

"We can do this." Came the soft voice of Ruby. "We've never backed down before and we're not going to start now." The others voiced their agreement. "Besides, it won't only be us out there. We'll be fighting alongside a genuine huntsman!"

" _Oh my sweet summer child."_ Crue thought, shaking his head. " _Wait, that was actually right. She's the child of Summer. Hah! God I'm fucking hilarious."_ Crue chuckled internally. " _Now, for the reveal."_

…

"Why hello girls!" Doctor Oobleck said excitedly, his tone not matching the expressions of horror on the members of RWBY's faces. "Who's ready to fight for their lives?" He asked rhetorically.

" _I remember laughing my fucking ass off at this part."_ Crue recalled, seeing the girls finally beginning to realise what exactly was going on.

"Professor Oobleck?" Weiss questioned hesitantly.

"Yes I'm afraid those bags won't be necessary girls." His eyes fell on Crue. "And boy. Seeing as you've opted to shadow a huntsman on what is now essentially a reconnaissance mission." He walked in a line in front of the five of them, before spinning back around and continuing to talk.

"I can assure you we will not be establishing a single base of operations. Rather we will be traversing several miles of hazardous wasteland, and making camp in any inhabitable locations we may stumble upon."

"I've packed all of our essentials myself plotted the air course and readied the airship. And!" He leaned down close to Weiss. "It's _Doctor_ Oobleck. I didn't earn my PhD for fun thank you very much."

"Come now children, according to my schedule we are already three minutes behind, schedule." With that, he literally zipped out of their peripherals, kicking up a trail of dust and appearing at the bullhead.

"Well alright then, looks like we're going to save the world with, Dr. Oo-bleck ok yeah when you say it out loud it sounds worse." Ruby spoke, before giving up halfway through.

"Save the world!?" A new voice came, prompting them all to turn around and see who it belong to.

Team JNPR walked up behind them, Nora throwing her arms out wide. "You're going on world-saving missions without us?!"

"I'm hurt! And sad!" There was a distinct rumbling emanating from her stomach. "Maybe a little hungry? That last one's not your fault though, Ren." The silent boy turned away from her, crossing his arms.

"Sounds exciting, where are ya going?" Jaune asked.

"Oh, just outside the kingdom." Ruby responded politely.

"Hey! So are we." Nora said happily.

"Ren and Nora wanted to shadow the sheriff of a nearby village." Pyrrha informed them. Her words stirred something in Crue.

" _Oh yeah… A lot of people were theorising that it was supposed to be the village they grew up in as orphans or something."_ "-with us tonight!" A voice suddenly exclaimed in Crue's ear, causing him to act on instinct and lash out.

"Ah!" Neptune cried out, wincing as he lay a hand on his arm, where Crue had inadvertently punched. "Dude!"

"You snuck up on me." Crue said slowly, lowering his fist.

"So you punched me?!" The blue haired boy exclaimed.

"Yeah, pretty much."

Neptune fumed, but before he could rebuttal, Sun stepped in. "We're shadowing a crime specialist. All inner-city detective stuff. We get junior badges." Jaune let out an 'oooooh' at those words.

Neptune still glared at Crue, as Sun continued talking. "We'd normally go to the city with you guys, which means stuff's always exploding and junk. So we thought this might be a better way to check out the kingdom when it's, y'know, normal."

"Well-" Ruby began, only to be cut off by Oobleck yelling in the distance. "Four minutes ladies!" He disappeared behind the bullhead, only to reappear and shout once more. "And gentleman!"

To say that the expressions on most everyone's faces were 'awkward' would be an understatement. "Well, uh, wish us luck." Ruby finally spoke, before turning away from the other group and walking toward the bullhead.

"Crue." Weiss began, looking up the Faunus. He raised an eyebrow at her, and waited for her to speak. "Why did you attack Neptune?"

"Cause he surprised me." Crue replied honestly.

"And why didn't you apologise?" She continued her questioning.

"I never apologise." Crue stated. Weiss looked at him confusedly. "I never apologise for anything. If something happens, it happens. If you've ever heard the word 'sorry' come from these lips, I was either lying or probably didn't mean it."

"That's, a rather drab way of looking at things." Weiss muttered.

"Sorry." Crue said.

"It's fine." Weiss smiled. "Wait… Hey!"

Crue smirked as they boarded the vessel. " _Also, fuck Iceberg. There's another reason I didn't apologise."_

"So, will you apologise for nothing?" The heiress questioned.

Crue fell silent for a moment, thinking about the question. "…No." He eventually spoke. "There's nothing in this world that would make me apologise." To Weiss, that was a fair answer, even if the sentiment wasn't one she agreed with.

To Crue, however, seeing as this world wasn't his, it meant something different. " _I'll never apologise for anything. And if you made me say it without realising it, it didn't mean anything."_

"I guess I just never saw you as much of a fighter." Crue was brought back to the situation he was currently in by Yang. He peered out of the open bullhead door, to see the landscape rushing away from him, turning from the hard greys of the city blurred into lush greens of the forest.

"I admit I fancy myself more of an, intellectual but I can assure you, as a huntsman, I've had my fair share of tussles." Oobleck told the brawler.

"Like the mushroom?" Ruby asked.

"Those are truffles." Blake told her.

"Like the sprout?" She asked again.

"Those are brussels." Her sister answered.

"Like the shellfish?"

"Mussels." Crue told her.

"Besides," Oobleck spoke. "given my expertise in the field of history, as well as my dabblings in the art of the archaeological surveys, our dear headmaster saw it fit to assign me to this particular, assignment."

"What does history have to do with this?" Weiss asked.

"My, what a preposterous question you silly girl!" Oobleck responded indignantly. "Why, history is the very backbone of our society. And the liver! And probably the kidneys if I were to wager."

"What about the spleen?" Crue asked.

"Environmental Biology is the spleen of this society my dear boy." The lanky professor told him.

"And that means…?" Weiss brought her question back.

Oobleck turned back to her, raising a finger. "The South-East quadrant outside of Vale is home to wild forests and deep caves. But, it is also the location of one of the kingdoms greatest failures."

"Mountain Glenn." Ruby said.

"That's right, it was an expansion of Vale." Yang agreed with her sister. "But in the end it was overrun by Grimm and fenced off from the rest of the city."

"Correct!" Oobleck congratulated. "And now it stands abandoned, as a dark reminder."

"And a likely place for a hideout." Blake realised.

"Precisely." Oobleck said, shifting his glasses slightly.

The bullhead approached the ruined city of Mountain Glenn, Crue having been there only once before, during that night when he made the deal with Torchwick.

The group leapt from the vehicle, landing in different ways. Yang landed with her fists cocked back, ready to fire Ember Cecilia. Blake had her hand on her weapon, prepared to pull it on a moment's notice.

Weiss had crouched down, her rapier raised high. Ruby had unsheathed Crescent Rose, holding the blade behind her. Crue slammed down onto the ground, one fist on the concrete, the other reaching around to grasp Setanta's handle.

" _Superhero landing."_ Crue laughed within his mind. The bullhead drifted off, returning to Beacon as Oobleck took a gulp from his thermos.

Crue looked around the desolate wasteland, not able to properly view it the last time due to how late it was. There was broken rubbles littered around the area, what looked like a ruined restaurant with a large letter 'W' hanging off the side.

The wind howled through the empty city, a pair of tumbleweeds skipping along the road in the distance.

"Ladies. Gentleman. You may still be students, but as of this moment your first mission as a hunter has begun." Oobleck told them. "From this point forward you need to do exactly as I say. Do you understand?"

He stared at the group before him, before snapping his head to the left. "Ruby! Crue!" Ruby dropped her weapon in surprise, whereas Crue stiffened upon being shouted at. "I thought I told you to leave all your bags back at school."

"But, uh, you hadn't told us to listen to you yet…" Ruby defended. "So I didn't." Her teammates all made various expressions of annoyance.

"She's not wrong." Oobleck mumbled. "Very well Ruby, Crue, leave your bag here we can pick it up upon or return."

"But I- whaa." Ruby began to stutter.

"Young lady! What in the world could you possibly have in that bag that could be so important for you to bring it wi-" The Doctor cut himself, when a furry black and white head popped out from Ruby's bag.

Crue took a large step away from the dog, his instincts screaming at him again. "Get back in the bag." Ruby whispered to the corgi.

The dog did not go back in the bag, instead opting to let out a "Woof!"

"We're here to investigate an abandoned urban jungle teaming with death and hostility and you brought, a dog?" Oobleck asked seriously.

"I-uhhh…!" Ruby tried.

"Genius!" The green haired man exclaimed, running away in excitement. The others all looked each other strangely, as Oobleck rushed by, grabbing Zwei from Ruby's bag and inadvertently knocking her over.

"Canines are historically known for their perceptive nose and heightened sense of sound. Making them excellent companions for hunts such as ours!" The Doctor spun Zwei around in the air, the dog barking in happiness.

He suddenly turned to Crue. "Crue!" He dropped Zwei and stared at the Faunus. "Ruby has given her ingenious solution to as why she has her bag! Why do you have yours?"

The boy let out an "Uhhhh…" Before snapping back to reality. "That is because I fear in your haste you may have forgotten something."

"Impossible!" Oobleck exclaimed, as Crue slung his bag around and began rummaging through it. "I have been on countless missions, and have never once forgotten an essential item-" He was cut off when Crue handed him two small boxes.

"What are these?" He asked slowly.

"Tampons and sanitary pads." Crue answered with a smirk. The girl's eyes widened dramatically, not realising they were actually without the essential hygiene products.

"Ah…" The doctor said slowly. "It would appear you are correct. I apologise ladies. I sometimes forget that you have, certain requirements."

If stares could kill, Oobleck would have been sixty feet under. Apparently the doctor noticed the glares, as he coughed awkwardly and scratched his cheek.

"What are your orders professor?" Crue asked, sparing the man from his soon to be 'death by glare'.

"Uh, yes!" Oobleck said, back to his usual speed. "As you have been informed the South-East area has been marked as a recent hotspot for Grimm activity. Now there are several possible explanations for this behaviour. One of which being, Grimm."

Crue turned, seeing where Oobleck was directing his attention. A Beowulf had wandered out from behind a dilapidated building. "Uhh, what?" Ruby asked, as the others were all still looking at the Doctor.

Crue raised his rifle and took aim at the beast. "Grimm, a creature of Grimm approximately 100 yards from us at this very moment." The girls all turned, unsheathing their weapons and pointing them at the Beowulf.

"Stop." Oobleck instructed them. "There are a number of reasons why Grimm would congregate in this particular area. The most likely of which would be would be their attention to negativity."

" _Well. Fuck me then. Seeing as I'm a walking ball of rage and depression."_ Crue thought sarcastically in his mind. "Sadness." _"Yep."_ "Envy." " _Not that one."_ "Loneliness." " _Gotten used to it."_ "Hatred." " _Fuckin' Bingo."_

"All qualities that are likely held by our hidden group harbouring ill intent." Oobleck finished.

"So, what now?" Ruby asked.

"We wait, we track, if the specimen leads us to its pack, that pack may subsequently lead us to our prey." The Huntsman explained.

"How long do we wait?" Yang questioned, a bored tone in her voice.

"It's uncertain, hours, days, weeks, why lone Grimm have known to stay isolated from the pack for months- and there's the whole pack." Oobleck changed his speech midway, seeing a large pack of Beowulf appearing.

"What?" Weiss said in disbelief.

"And now they've seen us."

"What?!"

"AND NOW THEY'VE SEEN US!"

Crue cracked his knuckles together, as Ruby asked Oobleck. "I take it tracking is out of the question?"

"An accurate assumption, yes." The professor agreed, as the Beowulves began stampeding towards the small group.

"What's the plan?" Yang asked.

"Show me what you're capable of." Oobleck instructed.

With those words, the group split, all of them going towards different sets of Grimm. Crue swung his hurl round, a wide smile on his face.

A Beowulf growled at him, and he brought his hurl down on its head, smacking it into the ground below and causing cracks to spider web from the impact. He looked up to the other Grimm, all of them snarling and barking at him.

He shifted Setanta into its sword form, and leapt towards a random Beowulf, slicing through the flesh and bone like a hot knife through butter. He smiled as the black ichor of the beast hit the ground, along with the upper half of its body.

The Faunus slashed his way through the group that had surrounded him, using his semblance to stick to a Grimm's back just long enough to stab Setanta through its neck, and then leap onto another. He dodged a swing of a Beowulf, flipping away to put distance between them.

He felt his back hit a wall, and saw that he was in a corner, with no RWBY or Oobleck in sight. The Grimm seemed to notice this, as they slowly advanced on him, apparently savouring in the moment before the kill.

They stopped moving when Crue began to chuckle rather menacingly. "You've got me surrounded…" He slammed the sword end of Setanta into the ground, and threw out his arms, claws extending from the hidden device in his clothes.

" **You poor bastards."**

…

"Piece of cake." Ruby said with a small laugh, as the slowly decaying bodies of Grimm littered the area around her and her team.

"Do not celebrate yet, for I am certain that this is the first bout of many. Now, where is Crue?" A growl came from behind him, and he turned to see a Beowulf slinking towards them. Just before the professor could request one of the girls to dispose of it, a blue blur shot down from the sky, impaling the Beowulf.

"You guys really need to be more aware of your surroundings." Crue said, wrenching his sword from the Beowulf's back, causing it to die.

"Crue. Impeccable timing. Where did you come from?" Oobleck asked. Crue pointed upwards, to where a pillar from a decrepit building was hanging over the edge. "That's the top floor."

"Yes it is. It made for an amazing entrance." Crue agreed. Oobleck let out an amused huff, before turning back.

"Let's carry on then, shall we?"

…

"Mr. Cullen." Oobleck asked casually, bending down and examining a plant while Crue decapitated a Beowulf, a smile on his face.

"Crue is fine, sir." He responded, panting lightly.

"Very well. Crue, have you ever lied to me?" His question threw him off guard, and the Faunus turned to meet his gaze.

"Have I ever, lied to you?" He repeated the question.

"Yes. That is what I asked. Now, do you have an answer?" The doctor questioned.

"Uh… I don't, think so?" Crue replied scratching his head. "If this is about the homework I didn't have done a while ago, I swear it actually was Nora mistaking it for pancakes."

"No, no. Nothing so trivial." Oobleck waved him off. "It was a good excuse though. The fact Miss Valkyrie burped up a page at the exact moment you finished explaining was extremely convenient."

"Yeah, tell me about it." Crue muttered, his eyes going skyward.

"But I was not referring to that instance. Do you recall the time in class I asked you why you became a huntsman?" Oobleck specified.

Crue's remembered the day in question clearly, as it was the same day he had come here, to Mountain Glenn. "Vaguely. I can't remember my reasoning." He told him honestly.

"You said you wanted to protect those you care about." Oobleck reminded him. Crue's eyes flashed, unnoticed by Oobleck. He recalled the day that he wanted to protect people. The day he had been unable. And it had cost him.

"Sounds about right." Crue said through gritted teeth.

"Yes… Well, I've noticed that while you do protect others rather well, you also seem to be rather fond of simply, killing the Grimm." The Huntsman told him. "And while that is essentially what a huntsman is supposed to do, you do it with relish."

"I do?" Crue asked, not having noticed this fact.

"Yes, you do. And while I am not the academy's therapist, I would like to know why that is." Oobleck tried to meet Crue's eyes, but the fact they were both wearing glasses made the action understandably difficult.

"Why I kill Grimm happily?" Crue scratched his head. Oobleck nodded. "Well, if I killed them, sadly, or angrily, they're just more negative emotions, aren't they? That'd bring more Grimm. So, I try to do it without bad feelings."

"Hm." Oobleck hummed. "I see."

…

Ruby laughed as Zwei attempted to bite the turkey stuck on the end of Crescent Rose, the corgi's stubby legs making him unable to reach the delicacy. She then noticed Oobleck observing her.

"Oop! Sorry! Uhh, are we ready to keep going?" She apologised.

"No," Oobleck told her. "I believe that will have to do for today. It's going to be dark soon." He looked at the sun, lying just above the horizon. He hurled the bag he had in his hand over to the rest of the group.

Unfortunately, it connected with Crue, who was not prepared to catch it. He let out an "Ugh!" As the bag collided with him and sent him off balance. Yang grabbed both the bag and Crue, hoisting them upwards.

"You four, set up camp in that building." He instructed them. "Oh and please do make sure there are no more of those, creatures." He turned back to face the group. "Your leader and I are going to secure the perimeter. Come, Ruby."

The leader followed the huntsman diligently, Zwei trotting after them. The others all looked at each other with complex expressions, before going into the building Oobleck had specified. "Yang." Crue whispered, catching up to the blonde.

"Yeah?" She whispered back, assuming that this was meant to be a secret.

"Do you want me to follow them, or something?" He asked. "Just, like, as a precaution." Yang considered the option, before shaking her head.

"No, they'll be fine. Ooblecks a professional. If they run into anything, he can handle it if Ruby can't." She told the Faunus, following after her teammates. Crue gave the corner where Ruby and Oobleck disappeared one last look, before joining them.

Luckily, there was no Grimm in the building, so they simply had to make the place habitable. After a small moment of clearing debris, they had begun to throw wood together in the centre of the room.

Crue reached into his back pocket, drawing the matches that for some reason he woke up with in this world. He struck one and placed it near the wood. Within a few short moments, there was a decently sized fire.

Crue, apparently pleased with this, walked over to a wall and rested his back against it. To everyone else, it would look like he was leaning on the wall, but Crue was using his semblance to lay down on the wall.

"I can't believe we didn't find anything." Yang complained, stepping near the fire.

"We've always been fortunate enough to be in the right place in the right time. I guess we can't always have luck on our side." Blake calmed her down.

"That's not what I meant." Weiss suddenly spoke.

"Huh?" Blake asked.

"Earlier, about, upholding the legacy." She explained. "There's more to it than that."

"Yeah, no me too." Yang agreed. "I mean, I don't know."

"I don't know either." Blake agreed. "I know what I want to do but, I figured I'd always take things one step at a time."

"Well, it doesn't matter." Yang said. "We know why we're here… Right?" Crue's fist clenched upon hearing those words.

" _I know why I'm here. Because some fucking jackass tried to play God and bring me into another fucking universe."_ He glared at the ceiling, knowing who he was directing his insults to.

"Ah! Wonderful!" Came the voice of Oobleck as he zipped into the room. "A textbook campfire." He rubbed his hands together above the flames.

"Fire!" Ruby exclaimed, kneeling down next to the campfire. "Sssooo warm."

"Very good, eat your dinners and hurry to bed." Oobleck instructed. "We have a lot of ground to cover tomorrow and we'll need you to take turns keeping watch over our temporary abode, any volunteers for first watch?" He said, all in one breath.

Ruby raised her hand gently. "Yo." With that, Oobleck dashed off, and Ruby stood to find a suitable vantage point.

"Hey," Yang stopped her sister momentarily. "Did Oobleck ask you why you wanted to be a huntress? I mean, what did you tell him?"

"Hm," Ruby thought. "No he didn't, weird. Oh well, goodnight guys." The reaper shrugged off the notion, going over to sit on the edge of the building.

The others looked at each other, before rolling out sleeping mats. Upon realising only three had been packed, they turned to look at Crue. He seemed to be asleep on the wall, his chest rising and falling softly.

"Guess he's asleep. I forgot his semblance can let him do that." Yang scratched her head, before sitting down on her mat and eating her food.

After a short moment, all three girls were lying down on the mats, various things going through their heads. Through the silence, Ruby spoke, though it went unheard by her teammates. "Don't worry. It'll be better tomorrow."

" _No. It won't."_

…

"Crue, you awake?"

"Hm." Crue responded, unsure of who had actually asked the question. As it turned out, it was Yang.

"Oobleck asked you too right? About why you wanted to be a huntsman. What'd you tell him?" The blonde brawler asked.

Crue crossed his arms over his chest and looked away. "That's not what he asked me."

"Well, what did he ask you?" Blake questioned, rolling on her mat to look at the boy properly.

"He asked me why I seem to take pleasure in killing Grimm." His answer sent waves of shock through the girls.

"You take, pleasure, in killing Grimm?" Weiss asked hesitantly.

"Yes? No? I don't know." Crue groaned. "All I know is, I'm a very angry person."

"We've seen you angry Crue." Yang told him. "You just, curse a bit more than usual, nothing big."

"That's not me angry." Crue shook his head. "That's me annoyed. Angry me is, much worse." He spoke softly, the others all looking at each other with worried expressions.

"It's an outlet." Weiss was the first to speak.

"Huh?" Crue turned to the heiress, genuinely confused.

"You say you're angry, and you need an outlet. So, when you attack Grimm, all of your anger is going towards that. That's why you're happy, because your anger is leaving you." Weiss said with light confidence. "I think."

"That, makes sense." The Wolf Faunus said slowly.

"Why would you be angry though?" Blake asked him curiously. "And, what happens when you get angry?"

Blood. Screams. Broken bones. These images raced through Crue's mind, and he shook his head to dispel them. "Bad things." He answered quietly. "And yes, that's an answer to both."

Silence fell over the group, as they tried to get back to sleep. It came easily enough to the three girls, but to the man on the wall? His mind was too full of rage and memories to even begin to try and drift off.

And so, he stayed awake, unknown to anyone else as his glasses concealed his open eyes. He watched as Ruby and Yang switched shifts, and the shorter girl took her sisters sleeping mat, appreciating the fact it was pre-warmed.

Just when Crue thought he might be able to get some rest, he heard a soft bark. He opened his eyes, and saw Ruby running out of the room after her dog. " _Oh yeah."_ He yawned. " _Ruby goes after Zwei, then finds the White Fang, then the train."_

He closed his eyes, and tried to get back to sleep. Only for his eyes to burst open as he realised what he just thought. " _SHIT! FUCKING SHIT BALLS!"_ He cursed in his mind, activating his semblance and climbing along the ceiling to exit the room without alerting the others.

He landed on the stairwell without a sound, and attempted to sprint down soundlessly. He was successful, thankfully. He hit the bottom floor and peered out the door, seeing Ruby hoist Zwei in her arms.

He sighed in relief, before hearing a voice. "What was that?" Ruby apparently heard it too, as she backed up behind a building and peered around it. Crue was unable to see what she saw, so he exited the building and walked up the side of it.

He saw two White Fang grunts, only a stone's throw from Ruby's hiding place. "What was what?" The other asked.

"I thought I heard a Beowulf or… something." The first grunt explained.

His comrade let out an annoyed grunt. "Let's just finish our patrol and go back to base. This place gives me the creeps." They began to walk away from Ruby, causing Crue to once more sigh in relief.

" _Wait! No! Don't fucking follow them!"_ He hissed at Ruby in his head. Ruby was sneaking after the two terrorist, and the term 'sneaking' is used lightly. While she was doing the action quietly, her actions looked as though they belonged in a cartoon.

Crue let out a silent scream, and followed after Ruby, as she followed after the White Fang. They eventually came to an open plaza, where the red reaper had to hold out Zwei and have him act as reconnaissance.

He let out a bark once the two grunts had disappeared. Ruby squealed in joy as she took out her scroll and tried to call her team. When it proved there was no signal, she picked up her weapon and began walking back.

Crue let out his final sigh of relief, as he began to walk down the building to meet her. He froze, hearing a crack. Looking down, he saw Ruby also freeze, and the asphalt around her begin to splinter.

" _NO NO NO NO!"_ Crue began sprinting down the wall, as a hole opened up beneath her. He hit the ground, just as Zwei was tossed from Ruby's hand back onto the street. Crue ran as fast as he could, seeing Ruby's head pop up from the hole.

Her eyes widened in hope, seeing Crue running to her rescue. The hope was dashed, as the piece of road she was holding on began to falter. Crue leapt the last bit of distance, outstretching a hand towards Ruby.

Ruby reached out to grab it, but the asphalt fell, bringing her with it. Her fingers barely brushed Crue's, before she fell down the hole. As she fell, with Crue reaching his hand out to her, the Faunus' mind flashed back to another time he lost someone, when he failed to save them.

"RUBY!" Crue screamed after her, seeing her fade into darkness. Zwei joined him at the edge of the hole, barking after his owner.

For that moment, Crue did not care at the fact the dog was next to him. Instead, he turned staring at the dog. "Go get the others!" He ordered, then stood up. "I'm going after Ruby."

Zwei barked once, and ran as fast as his legs would carry him back to their base. Crue jumped down the hole, his semblance causing him to stick to the side of it. He sprinted down the hole, hearing a crash echo up the shaft.

He increased his speed, until he saw light at the bottom. He skidded to a stop, just before falling out of the hole, and took in what he saw. Two White Fang grunts had their weapons pointed towards Ruby, and were moving closer.

Ruby reached back for her weapon, only to discover that she had lost it up above. " _Ok. Ok. Calm down. She'll get caught, then meet Torchwick. And then everything will be fine."_ Crue calmed himself down, going against his will to act.

And everything was fine… until the grunt punched Ruby.

It was at that point, that Crue promptly decided " _Oh. Fuck that."_ He jumped down from the hole, just as the same grunt that had punched her was about to kick her. Crue landed on his companion, a sick crunching sound emanating from the impact.

The member that had assaulted Ruby turned around, eyes wide in fear beneath his mask. "Who are-" The last thing he saw was the wrathful, steely blue eyes of a demon, before his world went black. Crue let his hurl fall from his hand, as he rushed over to Ruby.

"Ruby! Are you ok?" Crue reached down to pick her up.

"Crue." Ruby smiled, despite her jaw aching. "Looks like Velvet was right." She tried to joke. When she saw Crue's expression, she repeated what the Rabbit Faunus had told them earlier. "We'll be fine, we've got you looking out for us."

Crue let out a light sigh, and brought the girl into a hug. "I was terrified, you know that?" Crue told her, Ruby unable to see his face as she was currently resting her chin on his shoulder. "Seeing you fall down that hole, I thought I lost you."

Ruby pat the boys back. "Don't worry. You saved me. I'm fine." The Faunus eventually let go of her, standing up, grabbing the sunglasses that had fallen from his face after he jumped down. "So, what do we do?" She asked him.

Crue stared at the unconscious, possibly dead, White Fang bodies before him. He looked at their weapons, two rifles, and their outfit. "I have an idea."

…

Yang stretched out, having finished her watch. "Hey Weiss, it's your…" She looked down, seeing an empty mat. "Ruby?"

"Hey, where's Ruby?" She looked at her teammates, before her eyes fell on an empty wall. A wall that Crue had been leaning against. "Crue's gone too." For a moment, her sisterly instincts won over, the fact her little sister and a boy had left at the same time did not sit well with her.

"What?" Oobleck ran down from his sleeping area, and after him Zwei ran in, barking in fear.

"Zwei?" Yang asked, crouching down and petting the whimpering dog.

"What's going on?" Blake asked, standing up.

"Grab your weapons!" Oobleck instructed. "Crue and your leader may be in trouble."

...

Ruby cracked open an eye, observing her surroundings. She saw an Atlesian Paladin lifting what looked like a shipping container, maneuvering it away.

"Hey! Be careful!" Ruby heard a White Fang grunt exclaimed, and she turned to her other side, seeing a Faunus accidentally dropping a strange device.

"Hey!" Crue hissed. "You're supposed to be unconscious." Ruby closed her eyes, and looked at the ground. The plan Crue had come up with was for him to strip the two grunts he defeated, disguise himself as a White Fang, take their weapons, and act like he had kidnapped her.

"Sorry." Ruby whispered up to him. As they walked, Crue noticed a White Fang member with glasses over his mask look at them oddly.

"Hey Boss!" He called away from them, causing the two to start panicking. "You're gonna want to see this." From the train cart he was standing next to, a voice echoed out of it.

"Is it good or bad, Perry, cause let me tell ya, I have had a day." Ruby's eyes shot open, recognising the voice.

Perry turned to look at the Faunus in disguise, and the girl he was holding. "Uh… It's a little girl?"

Roman Torchwick leaned out from the train carriage immediately. His eyes fell upon Ruby, who was look up at him with wide silver eyes. "That would be bad." Torchwick said, discarding his cigar and jumping down from the train.

He turned to Crue. "Where'd you find her?" He asked.

"Near the entrance." He responded, making his voice slightly deeper.

"Hm." The ginger nodded, turning to Ruby and grabbing her by the scruff. "What're ya doing here, Red?"

Ruby's response was to attempt to punch him. Torchwick ripped the reaper from Crue's grasp, and sent her sprawling on the ground. Ruby covered her arms to protect herself, as the criminal laughed. "Wow, you are much more manageable without that oversized gardening tool of yours."

Ruby let out a rather unintimidating battle cry as she rushed at Torchwick. The man sidestepped, pushing her past with his cane. "Oh, man. Ya know, Perry, I really did need this." Torchwick thanked the bespectacled Faunus.

"Wasn't me Boss." Perry told him, nodding his head to Crue.

"Oh, it was you then." Torchwick gestured a hand to the disguised hunter in training. "Well, either way." He shrugged, wiping a tear from his eye from laughter.

"But seriously…" Roman bent down, lifting up Ruby's chin with the end of his cane. "How'd you find this place Red?" Ruby let out a growl, and disappeared in a burst of red. "Huh?" Torchwick said, looking around.

"Whoa!" He spotted Ruby, who was now a fair distance away from them all, having used her semblance to escape. Roman flipped his cane around, and the handled shot out, catching Ruby by her shoulder.

As he reeled her in, he spoke. "I see you've got some tricks up your sleeve. Let me make this clear." He stared down at Ruby, who had ended up at his feet. "We're not through here yet."

There was a sudden explosion, causing the cave to shake. Torchwick looked up, seeing a cloud of dust appear from behind a ruined building. "Oh what the-" He sighed. "Perry, if you and the boys could take care of that. Kinda in the middle of something."

Perry nodded, and began to walk towards the explosion, before an even bigger one sounded off, causing dust to fall from the roof of the cave. "What is going on here!?"

Several White Fang were running away from the explosion and onto the train tracks, firing back at whatever was causing them. While everyone was distracted, Crue slinked back, taking off his mask and pulling down his hood, before putting his glasses on.

From where the White Fang were running, came the cavalry. Oobleck, Weiss, Blake, Yang, even Zwei ran from the street, firing after the White Fang. While Torchwick wasn't paying attention, Ruby jumped up and pushed his bowler hat down over his eyes.

She leapt away from him, running towards her rescuers. Crue smiled, taking the two rifles he had stolen from their place behind his back and aimed them at the White Fang and Torchwick in front of them.

"Bout fucking time they showed up." He smirked. His words caused those in front of him to turn, and their eyes to go wide when they saw he was pointing two rifles.

"You…" Torchwick growled.

"Surprise." Crue said. "I'm an asshole." Crue opened fire, the recoil on the guns causing his aim to become scattered. But he wasn't looking for accuracy, just intimidation. Torchwick dived out of the way, only a scarce few bullets hitting him.

The other White Fang members were not as fortunate. They fell to the spray of Dust bullets, Crue not realising that they lacked Aura, or at least had a very low amount of it. Once the way was clear, Crue sprinted forward, stopping momentarily to pick up a handgun that had fallen from a grunts grasp.

Crue heard Torchwick command his and Ruby's death, and so thought it would be best to run faster. He saw Ruby come to a halt in front of him, and noticed four White Fang grunts all pointing weapons at her.

He jumped high, and fired the two rifles in a sweeping line, crossing one under the other. The White Fang fell, and Crue landed in front of Ruby, looking up just in time to see a red blast hurtling towards him.

"Fuck." Crue so eloquently put, as the blast connected, sending him flying backwards. Ruby watched as he soared over her, before turning to the person who shot at him.

"Ruby!" Yang exclaimed, squeezing her sister tightly.

Crue groaned, sitting up from the ground and looking at the group before him. "I'm fine! I'm fine!" Ruby told them. "But listen… Torchwicks got all sorts of robots and weapons down there."

"It's true." Crue grunted out, standing up completely. The others all opened their eyes and cocked their weapons. "It's me!" He shouted, throwing his arms wide.

"Prove it." Yang growled.

"Fuck you."

"Alright, it's him." She lowered her weapons. "And what do you mean Ruby?"

"Androids, mechs, they're all loaded up on the train cars." The leader informed them, adjusting Crescent Rose to her specifics.

"Ah, that's ridiculous!" Oobleck said with a wave of his hand. "These tunnels are sealed. The tracks lead to a dead end."

A sudden screeching noise echoed in the caves, followed by a voice. "Get to your places, we are leaving now!" There was a hissing of steam, and the train began to move.

"Well it sounds like they're going somewhere!" Yang exclaimed.

"We need backup." Ruby decided, taking out her scroll and attempting to contact someone. "Let me call Jaune." The scroll showed Jaune's face, before a black box flashed across it, reading 'LOW SIGNAL'. "I can't get through!"

"So what do we do?" Weiss asked.

Crue cracked his knuckles, and placed his guns back on his back, retrieving Setanta instead. "I believe we only have one option." Oobleck said.

Ruby readied her weapon, and turned to stare at the retreating train.

"We're stopping that train."

…

With a thud, the group boarded the train, thanks in part to Ruby's semblance. Crue ran forward a bit to the open carriage door, and grabbed the scroll of a White Fang that was about to call them in. The terrorist looked up to him with wide eyes, before being knocked out by Professor Oobleck.

The two tall males returned to the top of the train, where Weiss had a hatch opened. "Hurry children! We must get to the front and stop this train!"

"Um, Professor." Weiss attracted his attention.

"Doctor." Oobleck bent down to meet her eyes.

"What's that?" She pointed to a grey, cylindrical object with various wires sticking out of it.

Oobleck bent down on one knee to exam the object. "That my dear, appears to be a bomb." Everyone stepped away from the explosive device in fear.

"We've got baddies." Ruby pointed down the train, where various White Fang grunts were climbing atop the moving locomotive.

Crue's hands went to the weapons he had stolen from the White Fang. Two rifles and a single handgun. Along with his own weapon, he saw no foreseeable problem with getting through this challenge.

"I'll scout ahead." He told them, running forward before they had a chance to disagree or comment about the action. Crue swung around one of the rifles, spraying without bothering for accuracy. He managed to hit a few of them, before switching to his normal weapon.

There was a large explosion from behind him, and he turned to see the rest of the group looking back through the tunnel, where one of the train cars had detonated. "Holy sh-fuck!" Crue's curse went from one to another, when a White Fang member hit the back of his head with the butt of their rifle.

Crue did not fall, rather he winced, and then turned around to face the grunt who attacked him. The Faunus, upon realising his attack did not have the intended effect, froze, grabbing his weapon close to his chest.

"Dude." Crue stated, looking almost disappointed at his attacker. "That's not how you knock someone out with a rifle." He grabbed his own, and held it by the barrel. "You do this." He cracked it across the man's skull, sending him sprawling onto the roof of the train.

"That, is how you knock someone the fuck out." He turned back to the rest of the White Fang, seeing several rifles pointed at him. "Oh… right… other bad guys." Crue leaped backwards, as his opponents opened fire.

Crue jumped down to the coupling between the two trains, hearing the bullets ping off the metal. "Shit! I need backup!" He cursed. His backup came in the form of an explosion, ice, shadows, and an oversized hedge clipper.

Crue poked his head back up, seeing RWBY and Oobleck, as well as Zwei, standing on the train car in front of him. He jumped up, seeing the fight currently raging on. " _Like fuck I'm missing out on this."_ He grabbed Setanta from his back, and rushed into the brawl.

He ducked under the swing of a sword from a White Fang grunt with antlers, and brought his hurl back over his head. He swung, connecting it with the mans torso and sending him flying from the train, as he let out an oddly familiar scream.

"Commander Wilhelm!" Another grunt shouted after the man, the words causing Crue to twitch. " _Fucking seriously. The Wilhelm scream? Man, you are full of fucking clichés."_

Once all of the White Fang had been disposed of, the girls and Oobleck ran up to Crue, berating him for running off. "Crue! Why did you go running off like that?!" Blake interrogated.

"Because while you were busy discussing the bomb, I was busy beating the White Fang, and trying to stop Torchwick from leading Grimm to the city!" Crue responded.

"What?!" Weiss exclaimed. Rather than speak, Crue pointed a finger down the tunnel from where they came, and true to his words, hundreds of Grimm were stampeding after the train.

"He's right!" Oobleck called up to them. "It's the cars! They detach and explode, creating openings for the Grimm!"

Another car decupled, and Oobleck ran up to them. "We have to hurry! You four, get down below and try to stop those bombs!" He told Weiss, Blake, Yang and Crue.

The four nodded, running to the next cart and jumping down into it. Yang and Crue took the lead, with Weiss and Blake paired up in the back. "I guess this is what we trained for." Yang said, causing Crue to groan.

"Really? Of all the times for a pun?" He asked her. Yang looked confused, before her face broke into a small smile.

"That was unintentional, I swear." She promised. Weiss gave Blake a set of specialised Dust ammunition, and like that, the group of four began to run.

Only to come to a halt, when a person dropped down from the ceiling. Crue's blood ran cold, as the small girl raised herself up to view her opponents. She wore a cocky smirk as she inspected each of them, but the expression vanished once she laid her eyes on Crue.

"You guys go on ahead." Yang told them. Crue could not physically move, still staring at Neo, the girl wearing a look of betrayal. "This one's mine."

Blake and Weiss ran forward, followed by a dazed Crue. Neo, seemingly having come to her senses, readied her umbrella to attack. A shot from Yang's gauntlets caused her to flip away from the explosion as the others ran past her.

During a brief moment when the two passed, Crue met Neo's eyes beneath his glasses. "Trust me." He mouthed at her. The three all ran into the next carriage, the miniscule girl's eyes lingering on the male Faunus.

She heard someone walking towards her, and turned back to the blonde brawler. She stepped close to her, and Neo smiled, having found an outlet to take out her new found anger on.

…

In the next carriage, Crue, Weiss and Blake saw a beefy looking White Fang member slowly approaching them, dragging a chainsword along the ground, sparks emitting from the contact. "You two go on ahead!" Weiss told the two Faunus.

The heiress dashed forward, drawing the large man's attack. Once he raised his weapon up, Weiss leaped back, and Blake took her place, misdirecting the sword. Crue slipped the handgun he had stolen from a grunt, and shot the man in the knee.

The White Fang Lieutenant fell to the knee he was shot in, groaning as Crue and Blake rushed past him. He rose slowly, looking at Weiss, and letting out a menacing chuckle. "Finally, I get to kill a Schnee."

Weiss raised her rapier at him, and spun the chamber. And then, the battle was on.

…

Blake and Crue came to a stop in the next car, seeing Roman Torchwick waiting for them. "Hello, Kitty Cat. You miss me?" He asked, spinning his cane around. His eyes then fell to Crue. "And who's your friend here? Another White Fang traitor?"

Crue glanced down at his outfit, recalling the fact he was still wearing the grunts outfit. "Either way, we really need to stop meeting like this. People are gonna talk."

Blake glared at him, but before she could act, Crue spoke. "Would you care to do the honours?" He asked, gesturing his hand that held the gun to Roman.

"With pleasure." Blake responded. Crue fired the gun, Torchwick bringing up his cane to block it, giving the raven haired Faunus ample opportunity to attack him. As the two fought, Crue dashed into the next cart, trusting that Blake would be able to defeat him.

As Crue switched from car to car, he found the next one filled with White Fang grunts. They glanced up at him at first, thinking nothing of it due to the fact he was wearing their uniform. After the entire carriage did a double take, at which point Crue was already halfway through it, they raised their weapons and shouted at him.

"GET DOWN ON YOUR KNEES!" One that held what appeared to be a shotgun exclaimed. And Crue responded with:

"I'M NOT YOUR MOTHER LAST NIGHT!" And they took exception to that. Bullets flew from their weapons, Crue jumping to the roof and staying there, drawing their aim upward while still firing, inadvertently injuring some of their comrades.

He drew Setanta from his back, and slammed it onto the ground below, an echoing gong sounding out throughout the room, sending many of the White Fang flying back into the boxes that lined the side.

The one with the shotgun fired a blast at him, Crue narrowly dodging as he aimed the handgun at him. Three shots in quick succession had him down for the count, and Crue ran up to him, grabbing the shotgun.

" _I feel like I'm looting enemies in a video game."_ Crue thought, spinning the gun around and shooting it at the rest of the grunts. He inspected the weapon once the recoil had subsided. It appeared to be a sawn-off, and it was coloured grey and red, much like the rifles on his back and handgun in his other hand.

"Speaking of." He grabbed one of the rifles, switching the placement of it with his shotgun. He unloaded a clip as he ran to the other end of the train cart. Any White Fang that were still standing, providing they didn't get caught in a stream of bullets, took cover behind some cargo.

A dull clicking sounded, indicating that Crue was out of ammo. Instead of doing the logical thing and reloading, Crue flipped the rifle round, grabbed it by the barrel, and hurled it at a random grunt.

The grunt collapsed when the rifle connected with his head, and Crue used the opportunity to duck out of that car and into the next one. Or he would have, if the next door wasn't locked. Crue tried to open the door, mostly by punching it and kicking it and cursing at it.

When it proved that his usual tactics weren't going to work, he jumped above to the roof. He looked to the front of the train, and saw the end of the tunnel fast approaching. He also heard something, a sound akin to that of cracking ice.

He turned, seeing a dome of blue ice on the top of the train, the members of team RWBY sheltered inside it, and looking at him with wide eyes.

Crue ran up to them, as Weiss began to move her fingers, preparing to construct a glyph. "DON'T!" He shouted at her. The heiress stopped her actions, as Crue realised that she was going to try and get him inside the dome.

Unfortunately, there wasn't enough time. "I'll be fine." He told them all, smiling. They all began shouting, but it was muffled by the ice. Crue put a hand against the ice, and they all fell silent. "Trust me."

He then turned, facing away from them, and staring at the ever nearing wall. His smile fell, and he cracked his neck, holstering all of his weapons, minus Setanta.

" _Well,"_ He thought. " _This is gonna hurt like a bitch."_

And then, darkness enveloped him.

* * *

 _This was a long one, huh? Crue forgets a certain promise, and he will live(maybe) to regret it. Oh, and yes. Those weapons are going to be sticking with him. Crue will take any form of weapon, and even turn things that aren't usually weapons into ones._

 _Like loaves of bread. Or people. Or barstools. Also, fun fact:_ _The sawed-off shotgun is sometimes known as a "Lupara", a generic reference to the word "Lupo", meaning Wolf. He's gotta stick with that aesthetic._

 _Anyway, that's all for now. Hope you enjoyed, leave a review if you did, and as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	14. Crash and Burn

" _Pain."_ That was Crue's first thought. His second was, " _Why am I in pain?"_ And his third and final thought, was " _WHY THE FUCK AM I STUCK UNDER A ROCK!"_

…

Sirens blared through the city of Vale, as Grimm poured out from the explosion the train had caused. Team RWBY gathered together on a raised platform in the centre of a plaza, where Grimm had surrounded them.

Any and all civilians that had been there previously had fled at the first flash of black and white. It was as the four girls looked at the creatures surrounding them, that their leader came to a realisation.

"Where's Crue?" She asked slowly, her eyes widening in fear. Before any of them could actually contemplate the meaning of his disappearance, a King Taijitu let out a roar to indicate the other Grimm to attack.

However, the snake-like Grimm's roar was cut off by an even louder one, coming from under a pile of rubble. The huntresses in training, as well as some of the Grimm, watched, as a large rock began to rise up.

" **I."** The boulder was lifted up further, showing a pair of legs clad in black fabric. **"Hate."** The rock was lifted as high as it could go, and the person under it was revealed. **"TRAINS!"** Crue shouted. The outfit he had stolen from the White Fang was in tatters. The sleeveless white jacket was almost completely destroyed.

Crue roared, jumping into the air with the rock he was trapped under, and hurling it back down towards the ground, where it crushed several Beowulfs.

Crue landed on the piece of debris on all fours, before standing and look to RWBY. "Come on! We've got a city to save!" The girls all smiled, before dashing off and attacking their own Grimm.

Crue turned away from their battle to look at the Grimm circling him. His thumbs roved over the button to activate his claws, but he decided against it. " _They don't know I use claws. Ruby knows The Wolf uses claws."_

Instead, he slipped the sawn-off from his back and loaded it with shells he had stolen. "Pay attention you fucks." He aimed his gun at the Grimm. "Cause this is gonna be the last thing you ever hear." A Beowulf lunged at him, only to have the barrel of the shotgun shoved into its mouth, halting its movement.

Crue stared up at the Beowulf, his glasses lost in the explosion. The Grimm stared back, it's yellow eyes shrinking in fear upon meeting the cold, steely blue of the Faunus'. Crue smiled widely as his finger came to rest on the trigger.

" **Welcome to the Jungle."**

 **[Welcome To The Jungle – Guns n' Roses]**

The Beowulf's head exploded as Crue pulled the trigger, black blood spurting everywhere, a splash of it getting on his cheek. The rest of the Grimm growled at Crue for killing one their own. The Wolf Faunus growled back, firing off his shotgun again.

Another Beowulf fell to the raw power of the weapon, and Crue switched it out for Setanta after that. A Grimm with only two legs lunged at him, but Crue swung his hurl before it could make contact. " _Haven't killed a Creep before."_

He slashed at the two legged creature, before ducking under the swing of a Beowulf's claw and slicing its head off.

He cut and shot and crushed any Grimm he came across, somehow ending up back to the point where he was trapped under the rock. He blocked a blow from a Beowulf, and bent down to pick up his glasses as the Grimm strained against his metallic hurl.

"Man, these are made of tough shit." Crue mused, placing his glasses back on his face, nary a scratch on them. "Now." He turned to the Beowulf. "Where were we?" The Faunus wrenched the weapon out from the Grimm's grasp.

He jumped up, spinning horizontally as he slammed it down onto the beast's skull, crushing it into the ground. He heard a hissing growl, and looked up to see the black head of a King Taijitu staring down at Ruby.

Before he could take action, an explosion sounded. Crue looked to the skies, and saw a Valkyrie flying towards them, riding on the hammer of Thor. He may have been hallucinating slightly, as the flying person began to scream.

"NORAAAA SMASH!" She let out a battle cry, swinging the hammer around and smashing it down on the Grimm's head, before pulling the trigger of the device and causing an explosion that sent the Taijitu crashing into the ground.

"Great entrance Nora!" Crue shouted after her as she used to explosion to gain distance from the Grimm.

The ginger landed back with her team, saluting Crue enthusiastically. " _How am I gonna top that?"_ He thought jokingly, running off again to fight more Grimm. As he fought, he saw Jaune face off against an Ursa.

" _He's got this. I think?"_ Just to be safe, he rushed along the street nearest to where the Knight and the Grimm were battling. Thankfully, Jaune did not require any assistance. However, the fact that it was _Jaune_ that took down the Ursa made him realise something.

" _I have, no training for this, whatsoever. How the fuck am I still alive?"_ He stared down at his hurl. " _Right. Don't feel like dying, and I'm a fucking Gary Stu. So of course I'm brilliant at fucking everything."_

Crue grabbed the pistol from his side and aimed it down a Creeps open mouth. " _I can't believe I'm complaining about being good at something."_ He thought as he pulled the trigger. The Creep collapsed to the ground, and Crue heard voices speak.

"Nobody move, Junior Detectives!" A blonde monkey Faunus exclaimed, thrusting out his honorary police badge.

"We have badges, so you know it's official." Neptune said, standing next to Sun. The two shared a brief knuckle touch, before Crue walked up behind them and smacked their heads together.

"Can you stop playing police for a minute and maybe HELP!?" He berated the two of them. Before either of the two Haven students could respond, a loud whirring could be heard. The three looked up, seeing an Atlesian Airship flying over them, as well as several Atlesian Dropships.

The boys jaws dropped, and so did Sun's badge. It was at that point, Crue realised that Atlas droids would be dropping from the sky, and killing any Grimm, along with White Fang members. "SHIT!" Crue cursed, ripping the grunts white uniform off of him, and stamping the insignia into the ground.

"Dude, why were you wearing that?" Sun asked cautiously.

"Undercover." Crue replied quickly. "Now stop fucking around, and fight!" He ran off, prompting Sun and Neptune to glance at each other, before doing the same.

Crue saw Atlesian Knights fall to the ground, shooting at Grimm as they fell. He ran past a road, where two of them were shooting ineffectively at a Boarbotusk. Crue flipped round Setanta, grabbing it by its handle and swinging it low.

He ran in between the robots, causing them to cease fire automatically in order to not harm a civilian. He swung his hurl, connecting it with the spinning Grimm, and sending it flying. He turned back to the Atlesian Knights, and gave them a thumbs up.

The robots looked at each other, before outstretching their hands and repeating the gesture. Crue laughed lightly, and rested his hurl on his shoulder. "Man, you guys are pretty human. Maybe you can give Penny some tips."

With that, Crue dashed back into the battle, swinging Setanta, now in its sword form. He slashed at a Beowulf, backing up to gain more distance. As he did so, he felt his back bump something. Acting on instinct, he spun round, sword at head height.

As he turned, he saw raven hair, and amber eyes doing the same. " **K** _ **eep going.**_ _"_ He thought menacingly, but ultimately decided against it, stopping the blade a hairs breadth from Cinder's throat.

"Why, hello Crue." She smirked, eyes attempting to meet his.

"Cinder." He said in a monotone voice, pulling the handgun from his hip and blasting off the head of a nearby Creep. Cinder noticed his new firearm.

"Where ever did you get that?" She asked, stepping forward. Crue did not back down, instead, his eyes were focused beyond the woman in front of him.

"Well, it's not like I was leaving there empty handed." He nodded his head back to the blown up plaza, indicating he meant the White Fangs hideout.

"I see." She seethed. "Perhaps, you would do me a favour." Crue checked the rounds in his gun, seeing he still had almost a full clip. "And tell me how you learned about that location."

Crue shoved the clip back in, and shook his head. "No." Cinder frowned at this. "But, maybe you can do me a favour." He placed the gun against her forehead, amber eyes widening in shock. "And duck."

Cinder realised what he was instructing, and did so begrudgingly, spinning on her heel as she performed the action. Three shots later, and the Beowulf that had been about to claw her slumped to the ground.

Cinder growled, recognising the fact that Crue had technically saved her life. She stood slowly, and turned, glaring at the Faunus. His smirk did nothing to lessen that look of rage.

"Looks like I saved your life." He shrugged, holstering his gun. "What a strange turn of events."

"I hope you don't expect anything from this." Cinder snarled.

"Oh, my dear I wouldn't dream of it." Crue said sarcastically. "Just, remember my earlier warning." He placed a hand on her shoulder, feeling the heat from her anger. "And try to stay out of trouble, Cindy."

As if he could not be more infuriating to the half maiden, the nickname he gave her only served to worsen her mood. She fumed, watching as the boy walked away from her. With fire in her eyes, she considered using her powers to create an 'accidental explosion' too close for comfort for the Faunus.

Luckily, she did not have to. "Cullen!" She shouted after him, causing the dirty blonde to turn around confusedly. Cinder said nothing, but pointed to her right. Crue turned his head, following the direction.

His eyes widened as he saw an Ursa Major charging towards him. " _Well… I'm about to make a bad decision."_ Crue did not make to stop the Grimm, rather, the turned back to face Cinder, and raised his middle finger.

Cinder's brow twitched, but felt oh so satisfied when the bearlike Grimm sent Crue flying with a swing of its enormous paw. " _Worth it."_ Crue thought as he soared through the sky. He landed on the pavement with a sickening crack.

"Less worth it." Crue groaned, standing up. "I took a full frontal hit from a fucking Ursa Major, just to flip off Cinder. By Jaysus I am petty." He wavered slightly, and threw out his hands, finding something to grab onto.

He looked up, and saw Grimm running down the street towards him. " _Fucking hell."_ He cursed, beginning to reach around for Setanta. He stopped, however, when he realised what he had grabbed onto to help him up.

A wide smile broke across his face, as he took out his scroll, turned up the volume, and played a song.

…

"That, is how you make an entrance." Coco Adel said, folding up her mini-gun and turning it back into a handbag. Behind her lay two halves of a Nevermore, split cleanly in two.

"No way!" Nora exclaimed. "We totally had the better entrance! I flew in and blew up the head of a King Taijitu!"

"Um, about that…" Jaune tried to say.

"And my cutie Fox here punched an Ursa Major to death, and then made it explode!" Coco countered.

"Guys…" Velvet spoke softly.

"Well Pyrrha stuck the hero landing!" Nora exclaimed

"GUYS!" Velvet and Jaune both shouted, prompting the two bickering females to turn and look at them. The other members of their team were pointing to the wreckage of what used to be a bakery, where the train had crashed through.

While Nora was correct in saying she blew up the head of a King Taijitu, one must always remember that this beast in particular takes the saying 'two heads are better than one' literally.

A white coloured head rose up, hissing at them, two large fangs glistening in its maw. "Whoever kills it claims best entrance!" Nora wagered, readying her hammer. Coco grinned, and began to transform her bag once more.

"Wait." Velvet instructed, ears twitching. "Do you hear that?"

Everyone stopped, including the Grimm, trying to find the source of the sound. "It sounds like… **music."**

 **[He's A Pirate - Hans Zimmer]**

The sound of a revving engine could also be heard, and the source of the music was revealed. Speeding from a cloud of smoke, Crue appeared, riding a solid black cruising motorbike with blue highlights, holding Setanta in its sword form out to his side as music blared from the machine.

The King Taijitu roared at the newcomer, but Crue was unphased. Instead, he seemed to smile, as he swerved to the side, using a piece of rubble as a ramp, and shooting off it. While in the air he brought his weapon up high.

In a flash, he sliced his sword down, an arc of blue projecting from it, and separating the King Taijitu's head from its neck. The head fell with a bloody thump, and Crue hit the ground not too soon after, the tires squealing on the asphalt, before zooming forward.

"THAT WAS FUCKING AMAZING!" The Faunus exclaimed, laughing as he pulled the bike into a wheelie and sped off, hacking and slicing at all Grimm he passed.

"Did that just happen?" Coco asked in disbelief.

"If by _that_ you mean, Crue riding in on a motorbike like some kind weird maniacal angel, decapitating a King Taijitu in one hit, and riding off swinging his sword around like a madman, then yeah, that just happened." Blake deadpanned.

"THAT WAS AWESOME!" Nora, Yang and Ruby all exclaimed, eyes shining like stars.

"Crue totally wins! And whatever music that was totally fit!" Nora said, pumping her fists in the air.

"Does anyone else notice that sometimes, whenever Crue does something, Crue-y, music from his scroll plays automatically?" Weiss asked.

"Yeah. It's totally awesome!" Yang laughed. "His music taste is amazing. I'm totally gonna grab his scroll later and check it out."

"Maybe it's voice activated." Blake suggested.

They all shrugged, before hearing the music playing again, and seeing Crue driving along the other side of the plaza, smacking a Creep that was in his way.

"We should probably stop him before he gets hurt." Velvet worried.

"Too late." Ruby groaned, as Crue disappeared around a corner, and a shrill squealing of tires on asphalt was heard, followed by a crash.

Everyone winced, as they saw a hubcap roll from the corner. "I'm ok!" Crue's voice shouted at them. That was a lie, in fact, Crue was not ok. One could say he was the complete opposite of ok, close to being ko'd.

The reason he crashed was the avoid someone in front of him. A person, not a Grimm, was standing in the middle of the road before him. He stood from the crash, staring at the cold, white eyes of Neopolitan.

"Neo…" Crue spoke softly. Her eyes were tinged red, but it was in no part of her semblance that caused that. Crue had broken their deal. Betrayed Roman. Betrayed her. Crue took a step towards her, and she snapped.

She swung her parasol, Crue's eyes widening as he brought up Setanta to block it. The two weapons collided, but Neo brought the pink umbrella downward, catching Crue's hurl with the handle. Crue was jerked downwards, and Neo brought her leg up, connecting it with the Faunus' head and sending him bouncing into an alley.

Crue groaned, standing up, and seeing Neo trailing her parasol along the ground, the blade poking out of the tip sparking off the ground. "Neo. Let me exp-" The small psycho did not allow the boy to finish, dashing forward, tears stinging at the edges of her eyes.

Crue made to raise his hurl, but realised it was no longer in his possession. Neo began jabbing her rapier at him forcing him to backpedal. "I don't want to fight you!" He pleaded.

Neo remained quiet, a show of her complete and utter rage at Crue. To the Faunus, the silence was the worst part. Neo always spoke to him, always felt comfortable enough to let her guard down around him.

And he had broken that trust.

Crue popped his claws, the noise of them unsheathing sounding through the alley. He only did that in order to block the rapier that was currently being thrust at him. "Will you just listen!" Crue shouted at her.

Neo did not abide by the request, instead retracting the blade, and smacking Crue with the butt of her parasol. Crue went staggering back, his back hitting a wall. The Faunus' eyes went wide, and Neo slid the sword from her parasol, the rasp of steel echoing against the walls.

Crue closed his eyes briefly, and retracted his claws. "I'm not fighting you, Neo." He stared down at the ground, hearing her step forward. "Can you please just listen?" His response was a blade piercing through his shoulder.

Crue cried out in pain, briefly wondering when his Aura had been depleted. He felt the blade begin to retract, and reached up to grab it. The cold steel slit his palm, but he held on. "Neo! Please!"

The diminutive girl glared at Crue, and cracked the side of his head with her parasol, causing blood to flow. Crue's glasses went flying from his face, and he stumbled against the side wall of the alley, landing on his knees. "I said I don't want to fight you."

Neo rested the tip of the sword on Crue's chin, and angled his head upwards. She met his eyes, and hers turned white out of fear. "That doesn't mean I'm afraid to do it." He pushed the blade away with a wave of his backhand, and connected his head with Neo's.

The ice cream themed girl flinched, and suddenly found herself being pushed back. The back of her head hit the wall of the alley, and her vision blurred. Her sword fell from her grasp, and she felt something push against her throat, forcing her up the wall.

She managed to open her eyes, and saw Crue pressing his elbow against her throat, cutting off her air. She gasped, clawing at Crue's arm. She looked up to meet his eyes. Eyes that burned with a rage like none she had seen.

She had always wanted that intensity to be directed at her, but not like this. " _ **End her.**_ _"_ Crue pushed her further against the wall. Neo choked, trying to make some form of noise. Something. Anything. " _ **Kill her. She will only cause more trouble in the future.**_ _"_

Tears flowed from Neo's eyes as she began to lose consciousness. " _ **She will die. Just like the rest of them.**_ _"_

"Crue!" Neo managed to choke out. Crue blinked once, and stumbled back, eyes wide with fear. Neo fell to the ground, coughing and spluttering.

"N-Neo! I-I don't know what happened!" Crue said, looking at his hands as though they weren't his own.

As the girl regained her oxygen, her hand slid over to her sword. Crue placed a foot down on the blade, preventing her from using it. "Can you just let me explain first?!" Crue growled. Neo glared up at him, still coughing.

"It was going to happen anyway!" He told her, causing the girl to go from glaring to slight confusion. "They would have found the base without me. _They did_ , find it without me, because I didn't tell them anything!"

"The plan still would gone balls up. The train still would have crashed. And Torchwick still would've been captured." Crue told her. Neo's glare turned feral as she lunged at him. The Wolf Faunus stuck out a hand, grabbing her by the neck.

Neo lifted her legs up, locking them around Crue's neck and pulled him down, flipping him over her and slamming him against the ground. Crue's wind was knocked out from him, as he tightened his grip on Neo's neck and reversed the position.

He smacked Neo's head against the ground, and grabbed both of her hands, pressing them together above her head. "This isn't going to change anything!" He yelled at her. "Torchwick is still in jail, killing me won't bring him back."

Tears brimmed in Neo's eyes. "I know that!" She screamed, her voice cracking, as she kicked Crue off her, sending him further back into the alley. "I know! The only hope I have now is to do what Cinder says!"

Crue said nothing, knowing that she spoke the truth. "I can help…" He told her. Neo obviously didn't believe him, as her glare only increased in intensity. "Well, I can't. But The Wolf can."

"I don't believe you. I can't believe you anymore." She looked away, staring at the ground. She picked up her sword and parasol, and Crue tensed, his muscles ready to act.

Instead of attacking once more, she sheathed her blade, and stared at Crue with watery eyes. "We're through."

"W-What?" Crue asked.

"We are through. You and me, you and Polly." She repeated. "I don't care what Cinder says about that. We're finished."

"N-Neo." Crue pleaded. "Don't do this. You can't tell Cinder. She'll kill me, she'll kill you for keeping the secret."

"I'm not telling her you're The Wolf." Neo spat. "I can't trust you anymore, but that doesn't mean I want you dead." She turned away from him, walking towards the entrance of the alley.

"I'll save Roman. I promise." Crue told her.

Neo froze, just before the entrance, her fists clenching around the handle of her umbrella. She did not turn to look back at Crue, for if she did, she wasn't sure if she could say the next sentence without screaming.

"Go to Hell."

And like that, Neo had disappeared in a blink. The last words she spoke to Crue repeating on an endless loop inside his mind. He clutched his head with his hands, and fell to his knees, resting his forehead against the cold concrete.

" _Don't cry. Don't cry. Don't fucking-"_ *drip* " _cry. God fucking damn it."_ Crue let out a strangled cry, as his insides tore at him, making him feel nauseous.

He smacked one hand against his head, and forced himself to stand. " _I'm not going to fucking cry."_ He wiped his eyes, ignoring the stinging sensation. He reached down and grabbed his glasses, hiding the redness of his eyes.

He walked out from the alley, stumbling every second step. Whether it be from the physical pain he just endured, or the emotional, unknown.

"Crue! There you are!" Crue looked up, his ears flicking in the direction of a high pitched voice. Ruby sped over to him, before stopping halfway, gazing at his battered body. "What happened?!"

"Well, this sorta happens when you crash a bike." Crue told her, laughing.

The reaper sensed something off about his words, and his laugh. She shook it off. "Well, we're heading back to Beacon now, come on." She waved her hand and walked off, before noticing Crue wasn't following.

"Actually, Ruby. I'm gonna hang back a bit. See if I can't find who owns the bike." The Faunus told her. Ruby squinted her eyes at Crue, noting that his smile seemed forced.

"Crue… is everything ok?" She asked him softly. Crue recognised the same tone of voice that she used the night she found him on the ledge of the building. And at the current moment and time, that ledge was looking rather promising.

"I-" Crue cut himself off, staring down. "No…"

"Do you want to talk about it?" She asked kindly.

"...Not now." He told her. "When I get back." He began to turn, before stopping, and placing a hand on her head, ruffling her hair slightly. "I promise."

If Ruby saw any form of liquid trickling down from under Crue's glasses, she did not comment on it. "Alright, I'll see you back at Beacon. Oh! And here's your bag." She handed Crue the green bag.

He checked it quickly, seeing that both of his outfits were still inside, along with the sanitary items. "Thanks Ruby." He smiled at her, a more genuine smile, and walked over to the motorcycle, picking it up and wheeling it away.

Ruby lingered, watching the boy walk away. She wondered what could be causing him such pain, aside from the obvious physical pain he was in, judging from the dried blood on his head and chest. " _But, he doesn't cry when he's actually hurt."_ She thought.

She shook her head, and walked over to where her team were waiting by the bullhead. "Hey, where's Crue going?" Yang asked her sister.

"He said he was gonna find the owner of the bike, and then he'll be back." Ruby informed them.

"Aww, that bike was so cool." The blonde complained.

"Yang! It belongs to someone else!" Weiss berated.

"Well, yeah, but maybe it belonged to a bad guy." She theorised. "So, then him keeping it wouldn't be so bad."

The others rolled their eyes. "You just want someone to race Bumblebee with you." Ruby accused.

Yang put a hand against her chest and gave a mock gasp. "What!? How could you accuse me of such a thing." She placed her wrist against her forehead dramatically. "My own sister!"

The group laughed as the Bullhead took off, leaving Crue watching it go, and several Atlesian Knights cleaning up the scene. He also noticed Professor Goodwitch using her semblance to rebuild structures, and decided to get out of there before he was noticed by her.

He inspected the bike for damages. Nothing more than a few scratches and a missing hubcap. He threw a leg over the seat, feeling the cool leather on his legs. He revved the engine twice, sending vibrations up his spine.

Through all of this, his face remained as though it had been carved in stone, not a single emotion playing on his face. With everything in check, he drove off, a destination in mind, if only he could find it.

...

"You don't look overage." A large man with a red tie and black beard said. Crue looked up to him, and took off his sunglasses.

"Do I look like I care?" He asked. The man gulped once, before nodding.

"So, what'll it be?" Junior asked. It had taken Crue the better half of an hour to find the club, having to ask for directions a few times. And even then, the entrance was well hidden.

"A Guinness." Crue replied, looking around the large and empty room. The place was almost completely deserted, save for a few men in black suits and red ties, a man up in the DJ booth wearing a bear mask, and two twins in white and red.

"The Hell's a Guinness?" Junior asked. Crue blanked, and his forehead hit the bar with a groan.

"Of course you wouldn't know what Guinness is." He muttered, then sighed. "Whiskey. Strong."

Junior nodded, turning back and grabbing a bottle of 'Beowulf Brew' and pouring it into a shot glass. He slid it the drink over to Crue, who upended it in one and grabbed his wallet with the other hand.

"You call that strong?" The Faunus complained, idly looking at the reflection of the club in the mirror above the bar. "Why isn't anyone else here?" He asked.

"Everyone got out when the siren went off. You're about the only person who's come through those doors since then." Junior told him.

"Yeah, well I was helping out with that, so that's why I need another." He tapped the glass, and Junior took the hint, and poured him another shot.

"What happened?" Junior asked, as Crue slammed the drink, the rough whiskey burning the back of his throat.

"Grimm. White Fang. Torchwick. One big ass explosion." Crue explained shortly. "A train breached Vale from old tracks that went to Mountain Glenn."

"And you fought in this, Breach?" Junior asked. He noticed that his customer's eye twitched lightly when he called it that.

"I'm the one that found out about the damn plot." He flicked his glass once more, and Junior poured again. "Well, me and a few others."

"Ok, you fought a lot of Grimm after coming from a place where you were fighting terrorists." Junior looked on in surprise as Crue downed another drink. "But that isn't usually cause enough to drink, celebration or failure."

Crue slammed the glass back down onto the bar, Junior's henchmen looking at him with a raised eyebrow, and the two twins glancing at each other before shrugging. "That's because when I came back from that shithole, my girlfriend broke up with me."

Junior's eyes widened noticeably. The bear of a man poured another shot silently. Crue nodded in thanks, and swallowed it, wiping his mouth with the sleeve of his shirt after he was finished.

He changed into his regular outfit before entering the club, slinking into a random alleyway. His weapons, which currently consisted of Setanta, an automatic rifle, a sawn off shotgun and a handgun were all on his person.

Needless to say, that caused a few stares. "I know that as a bartender I probably shouldn't say this, but alcohol won't solve all your problems."

"Yeah, well neither will feckin' milk." Crue shot back, before sighing and rubbing his head with his hand. "It's not like this'll get me drunk." Junior noticed that what he said was true. He glanced at the bottle in his hand, making sure he got the right drink.

"You've had four shots of Beo whiskey. How are you not stumbling out the door?" He asked incredulously.

Crue smirked as he answered. "Easy. I've got green in my veins."

"That doesn't sound healthy." Junior said concerningly. Crue rolled his eyes, but explained.

"What I mean is that I'm Iri-" He was cut off by the sound of club doors being swung open.

"This establishment is now under control of the White Fang." A voice shouted, and guns were cocked. Crue looked in the mirror above the bar, seeing several Faunus in uniform aiming guns at all of Juniors men.

"Of course… My day could only get worse." He shoved his glass towards Junior, who looked at him in surprise. He didn't know how this kid could see all this and remain unphased. "I'll handle this."

"You will follow our command! You will tell no one of this!" One of the White Fang members said, as the group moved forward into the club. There were more than Juniors men, but only just. This was obviously whatever remained of the Breach.

"Any weapons you have will be confiscated! And all-" "WOULD YA SHUT THE FUCK UP!?" Crue yelled, silence falling across the club. "I'M TRYING TO FUCKING DRINK HERE!"

The White Fang members looked astonished, but the one who had exclaimed their presence, a tall man with horns sticking out of his forehead, curving upward. "You dare to challenge the White Fang?!"

"Get me a bigger glass." Crue requested Junior, ignoring the outraged Goat Faunus. Junior looked between Crue and the White Fang member, and reached under the counter for a rocks glass. He poured the same whiskey into the glass, and added a few ice cubes.

The Faunus who had called out was now shaking with rage. He began to stomp over towards Crue, before noticing the different weapons strapped to his back. "Those are our weapons! You stole from us!"

"Congratu-fuckin-lations, you have eyesight that could rival a two year old. Good for you." Crue mocked, sipping from his glass. He did not notice the Faunus reach for his own rifle, and smack the butt of it against Crue's head.

The pain was not great, but the action caused Crue to drop his glass in surprise. The glass did not shatter, but it bounced, expelling its contents onto the bars surface. "You will return what you stole from us at once! Or suffer the consequences!"

Crue said nothing, watching as the golden liquid dripped from the counter top and onto the floor. He slowly stood, the barstool scraping against the hard floor from under him. "If you ever follow only two pieces of advice in your life, let it be this." He told the Faunus slowly.

The Goat Faunus looked confused, before he felt something hard shatter against the side of his head. "Number one." Crue said, the remnants of the glass now clutched in his hand. " **Never mess with a man's drink.** "

"Number two." The White Fang member tried to stand, and aimed his rifle at Crue. It was knocked away by a barstool, the feet of which was being held by Crue. " **Never, ever, start a bar fight with an Irishman.** "

Crue gripped the stool with both hands, and swung. It connected with the man's stomach, and sent him flying back towards the group of terrorists, some of them catching him. Crue marched over a glare on his features that would send any man running for the hills, unless they're only way to do so was currently being blocked by Junior's henchmen.

As Crue made his way over, he did a quick headcount, and noted that almost all of the Faunus there were male. "Now, I'm giving you this chance to walk away. Cause let me tell you, I have had, _a really shitty day._ "

"I had to deal with your bullshit for one, then I had to deal with the Breach, and then, after all of that shit, during which at many points I almost died, my girlfriend broke up with me." He dropped the stool, and stood tall in front of the terrorist group.

"And you are all going to leave…" Claws shot out of his hands, making the White Fang flinch. "OR I'LL PEEL YOUR DICKS LIKE FUCKING BANANAS!" The Faunus screeched, many of them protecting their groins with their hands.

"NOW GET THE FUCK OUT!" Crue roared, slamming his foot against the ground, as Junior's men opened the doors behind the terrorists. The group stampeded out of the establishment all too happily, the Goat Faunus that had tried to attack Crue being dragged by his legs due to his unconsciousness.

Once the screaming had died down, and all of the Faunus had left, the silence in the club came back in full force. Only to be broken by cries of joy that came from Junior's men. Crue let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding.

Sure, intimidating a bunch of terrorists by threatening to do unspeakable things to their genetallia _sounds_ easy, but in practice it took a strong will. And if there was anything Crue had in surplus, aside from satirical remarks, it was willpower. Though it could easily be confused for stubbornness.

"Nice claws." A voice called to him. Crue turned, seeing the twin in red looking at his hands. Crue glanced down, flexing his hands and roving his thumbs over the device.

"Thanks." He said, sheathing them. "Yours aren't so bad either." The girls claws were vastly different from Crue's. Where the Faunus had three prongs, hers had two, and were much longer, as well as being a mixture of red and black in colour.

"Thank you. I'm Miltia." She nodded politely.

"Crue." He told her, cracking the joints in his neck, and turning away from her. "Pleasure to meet you."

He began to walk back over to the bar, where Junior stood, jaw slightly slack. "Yo." Crue waved a hand in front of the bartenders face, snapping him back to reality. "Don't suppose I could get a refill?"

…

"My head is killing me." The Wolf complained. Once he had decided he had enough self-depreciating drinks of an alien alcohol, he left Junior's bar, promising to return at some point. The weapons he had, 'acquired' during the Breach, as well as his own weapon, were safely hidden beneath his cloak.

He was going to drive the motorbike back to Beacon, but realised two things. One, Beacon was situated on a cliff. Unless his Semblance applied to vehicles, there was no easy way to get there. Two, he had been drinking.

If he had come all that way just to die at the hands of something as avoidable as drunk driving, he would not be pleased. So, he decided to get into his Wolf outfit and hop across the buildings of Vale. "Is drunk parkouring as dangerous as drunk driving?"

Apparently it was, as the moment Wolf landed on a building rooftop, he slipped, and fell flat on his face. "Of course this would happen to me." He thought, groaning as rose from the ground.

"YOU!" A voice exclaimed. The Wolf turned, seeing a sight that surprised him. Standing atop the same rooftop as him, granted at the other end of it, was none other than Cinder Fall, along with three other antagonists. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!?"

She was taking no liberties with being silent this time, lacking her disguise, and already having been defeated by the vigilante once before. To her surprise, the Wolf did not answer. Instead, he rose a hand to rest it against the slit of his helmet, groaning out.

"I literally do not have to put up with this shit." He complained, continuing to walk the way he had been before he had fallen. He walked out of frame, behind a series of tall vents, hiding him from their view.

" _That_ was 'The Wolf'?" Mercury asked confusedly. "The same guy who managed to stop you from hacking the CCT?"

"Damn right!" The Wolf called from behind the vents, laughing all the while. Cinder growled, but her face grew a strange expression, as the sound of her enemy laughing was replaced with a violent gargling.

"Ugh. I just threw up in my helmet." The Wolf complained, stumbling back around the vents and into the view of the four.

"Ew." Emerald shuddered.

There was only one person who had no idea what was going on. "What is going on?" A tall Faunus with bull horns and brown hair questioned.

Wolf redirected his gaze to the man who spoke, and he saw red. Literally and figuratively. The Bull Faunus stiffened, feeling a wave of peril wash over him. " **You…** " Wolf growled out, taking a step forward. His memories flashed before him, watching the Faunus stab Blake, and then dismember Yang.

His hand instantly rested on the handle of his katana, his instincts screaming at him to run. "You know him, Taurus?" Cinder seethed.

"I have never seen this… beast, before in my life." Adam Taurus responded, but he still kept his weapon at the ready.

"Then why does he act like he knows you?" Cinder interrogated. Her question was answered by an echoing laugh from The Wolf.

"Oh, I know him, but he doesn't know me. Adam Taurus." He spoke his full name, and the White Fang member increased the tightness of his grip. "White Fang leader. Orchestrated a Dust robbery on a train a few months back, at which point his girlfriend broke up with him because he realised what a monster he had become."

Cinder, Emerald and Mercury all looked to Adam, whose expression of rage showed that his words were true. "But let me tell you something Taurus…" The Wolf took another step forward, claws shooting out from his hands. " **I'm a much bigger monster than you.** "

Adam began to shiver, but not from the cool night air of Vale. Going against your instincts was always troublesome for humans, but for a Faunus? It was like trying to go against the very fabric of your being. And the Bull's instincts had always come through for him, but never before had they sent such warning signals from a single man.

"But I don't just know you." The Wolf changed his gaze back to Cinder, who prepared herself to meet his wrathful eyes once more, but to her surprise she could not see them. "I know about all of you."

"Cinder Fall." He spoke, and the half-maidens fists clenched. "Currently in disguise at Beacon, under the ruse you are from Haven. _Attempted_ to hack the CCT. Skilled with Dust, and Dust manipulation."

"Mercury Black." He changed his attention to the assassin, and in that instant, the grey haired boy could understand everything that Cinder had told him and Emerald about the intruder. "Son of Marcus Black. Killed his father, but lost his legs in the process. Terrible with women."

Mercury would have rebuttled, were it not for the current situation. Finally, The Wolf's head turned to Emerald, who froze upon being stared at. "Emerald Su-" He stopped. The antagonists glanced at the girl in question from the corners of their eyes, wondering why he stopped on Emerald.

"Emerald Sus- Su- Susta-." He sighed. "Ok look, being perfectly honest here, I haven't a fucking clue how to pronounce your second name." The Wolf told her. The mint haired girl looked mildly offended, before realising that the fact he couldn't pronounce it could prove beneficial.

"Anyway. Emerald. Thief. Liar. Semblance, ability to give a person mental hallucinations." At this, all three of the infiltrators froze. "Now, you might be wondering how I know that."

"There is an answer to that. But I'm not going to give it to you." The Wolf mocked. Cinder's nails were biting into her palms, only her Aura preventing them from drawing blood. "Instead, because I'm a nice guy, I'll give you a piece of advice."

"What are you?" Cinder growled. "You fight me, you mock me, you have information on us, and yet you aid us? What in the Hell are you!?"

"Have you ever heard of the term, 'chaotic neutral'?" Wolf asked her. Cinder frowned, wondering if this was some form of code.

"That's a 'Grotto's and Grimm' alignment, isn't it?" Mercury spoke. Everyone looked to him in confusion. "What? I have hobbies."

"That's what it's called here?" Wolf muttered, before shaking his head. "Well, yeah, the nerd is right." "Hey!" "Long story short, I'm in this for me. And only me. I don't care about society's restrictions, or a do-gooders zeal. I do what I feel like."

"And right now? I feel like testing something." The Wolf cracked his neck, joints popping. "So, Emerald." The dark skinned girl tensed. "Would you kindly, use your Semblance on me."

The wind blew, leaving the statement hanging in the air. "W-What?" Emerald stuttered.

"Would you kindly, use your Semblance, on me." Wolf repeated. "I wish to prove something."

Emerald, unsure as to how to handle the situation, turned to Cinder. "Do it." She said instantly. "Make him suffer." Flames lit behind the raven haired woman's eyes, as Emerald nodded, and activated her Semblance.

There was nothing but silence for a moment, before Emerald spoke. "I-It's not… I can't…" She concentrated harder, her blood red eyes straining in effort. "Why isn't it working!?" She finally snapped.

The Wolf seemed to laugh at her anger. "Well, here's the thing my little gem." He halted, and shuddered. "Ugh. That sounds like something Mr. Edgelord over there would say." He gestured to Adam, who blinked behind his mask.

"Forget I said that. But, anyway, your Semblance has a weakness." He told her. Emerald actually leaned in, almost eager to discover her downfall. "The person needs to have unbroken line of sight. As in, if the person has something covering their eyes, you won't be able to use it on them until you get rid of whatever is covering them."

"For example, I stole a pair of shades from, some random Faunus guy, I don't know who he was." The Wolf shrugged. "And because my eyes are obstructed, it won't work."

"You stole them from someone?" Cinder said quickly, only knowing one Faunus that wore sunglasses. "Who was it? What did they look like?"

"I don't fucking know!" The Wolf exclaimed. "The guy had sunglasses, that's all I was interested in. I think he was, blonde, or something." He said dismissively. "Why? Is he important? Is he your boyfriend or something?"

Cinder let out a noise that no one in the vicinity would have expected her to. It was a sound that was more akin to a squawk from a rather perturbed bird more than anything. "No! I am not dating that idiotic Faunus!"

"What has him being a Faunus go to do with it?!" Adam suddenly exclaimed. "Do you think yourself better than him?"

"Yes I think myself better than that fool! But not because he is a Faunus!" Cinder retorted.

"Uh… Cinder." Emerald tried.

"The kindly explain why you do not believe this Faunus to be worth your time!" Adam countered.

"Guys…" Mercury attempted.

"Because he is an annoying, arrogant, aggressive, aggravating, asshole of a Faunus, whom I wish to end painfully!" Cinder alliterated.

"HEY!" Emerald and Mercury both shouted.

"WHAT!?" Cinder and Adam both yelled. The two lackey's gestured their arms to where The Wolf was. Key word, _was_.

"He left while you two were arguing. And I'm pretty sure he took a picture before he did." Mercury told them. Cinder growled, the temperature around her heating up to near boiling, prompting the others to take precautionary steps back.

A scream rose up in Cinder's throat, and the other three ducked behind cover as she let it loose.

…

" **DAMN YOU WOLF!** "

Crue sniggered, currently on a bullhead back to Beacon, his Wolf outfit safely stored away in his bag. "Looks like my headcanon was right." Crue mused. "I always thought it was weird she only used her semblance on Coco after she broke her glasses."

Luckily, there was no one else on the bullhead to witness the Faunus talking to himself. Once the elation from enraging Cinder had passed, he recalled his reasoning for being on the bullhead. Why he was only getting on now.

"Neo…" Crue breathed out. He shook his head, trying to shake away those thoughts. " _Even though it was supposed to be a fake relationship… doesn't make the hurt any less fake."_

The bullhead arrived, Crue stepping off it and seeing the shattered moon of Remnant high in the sky. He sighed, shoving his hands into his pockets with his head held down low as he walked towards Beacon. He glanced up momentarily, seeing a mane of blonde hair in front of the Beacon statue.

"Hey Yang." Crue greeted, walking past the brawler, who seemed to freeze upon being addressed. He glanced up again, seeing a woman with dark raven hair and red eyes. "Hey Evil Yang."

He walked a bit further, before slowing to a stop. He glanced behind him, seeing both 'Yangs' looking at him. "Man. I am _really_ drunk." He shook his head, walking towards the first year dorms. It was only after he had closed the door to the dorms that he had come to a realisation.

"That was fucking Raven!" He exclaimed silently. "I could've fucking died!" He blinked once, before realising that fact wasn't true. "Wait… No I wouldn't have. You're too trying to keep me alive for, something, and I'm too fucking stubborn to die."

He sighed, making his way to team RWBY's dorm, trying to forget about everything. The alcohol certainly helped with that, but no matter what, he could not dissuade the memories he had shared with Neo.

Even ignoring those of a sexual nature, they had spent a lot of time together as Crue and Polly. He recalled one such memory, where they had fallen asleep on a bench in Beacon, and Crue awoke to find her curled up on his lap, her hands draped around his neck, sleeping peacefully-

" _Damn it!"_ Crue cursed, smacking his head. " _Stop remembering!"_ He took out his scroll, having made it to the dorm. He opened the door, peeking through to check if the others were asleep. When no one reacted to him entering, he sighed silently.

He closed the door with a quiet 'click', and shrugged off his bag. He caught it one handed before it fell to the floor, and walked over to his dresser. He opened his bag, retrieving his weapons. He placed those stolen from the White Fang in the bottom drawer.

He then took that drawer out from the dresser entirely, and hid his Wolf outfit on the ground, under the dresser itself. He placed the drawer back where it belonged, and let out a long, shuddering breath. He barely began to undress, only able to get off his waistcoat and tie before the fatigue became too much.

He did not even make it to under Weiss' bed, instead, falling onto the floor next to it, and laying there, letting the events of the day wash over him. " _I went to Mountain Glenn. I infiltrated a White Fang base. I fought said White Fang several times over. I got caught up in a train crash, with no protection. I fought Grimm. I got nailed by an Ursa Major and sent flying. I fought Neo… I broke up with Neo… And I got drunk."_

Despite the fact Crue was facing the ground, his eyes looked in the direction he would consider skyward. With the 'Author' on his mind, he let him know exactly how he was feeling about the matter.

" _I fucking hate you."_

* * *

 _Well, isn't that just a kick in the teeth for Crue. Neo broke up with him. A man can only take so much pain, losing his loved ones, being sent to another world, and now losing his girlfriend. What will be the next thing Crue loses? Hell if I know._

 _Also, the temptation to put the RvB Warthog music on for when Crue was riding the motorbike was so great. But eventually, I decided Crue wasn't_ that _much of a nerd. Hope you enjoyed, let me know if you did, and as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	15. That's Rough Buddy

" _Where the fuck am I?" Crue wondered. He walked along an empty street, that was familiar, yet alien at the same time. To him, it looked as though he was back in Dublin. But the scenery was just, not quite right._

 _As he walked, he heard a quiet sobbing. Looking around, he located the source of the crying behind a bin. It was him. Crue. But, a younger version of him. In fact, he looked around the age when he lost his family._

" _Hey…" Crue called softly, causing the boy to look up in fright. He had a younger face, but his eyes seemed, duller. Softer. More innocent._

" _W-Who are you?" The boy asked fearfully._

" _I'm you. I think." Crue answered. "Who are you?"_

" _I'm Da-" Whatever he was going to say was cut off by a large explosion off to Crue's right. The younger version of Crue whimpered, covering his ears. His human ears, Crue noted, that he was not Faunus._

" _What was that?" Crue asked, standing tall and looking at the dust of the explosion._

" _T-That was the bad man." Young Crue whispered. "H-He's always been here. But he got worse. And now he's fighting something."_

" _The bad man?" Crue wondered, cracking his neck and walking over to where the explosion had originated. He barely took two steps towards it, when a being was flung from it._

 _Crue ducked under the projectile, and rolled to the side. Whatever was flung had crashed into the street behind him, creating a massive crater. A blur shot from the crash, and landed in front of Crue. The Faunus had to blink, seeing himself standing before him._

 _This copy matched him exactly, except he too lacked any extra ears. "Who are you?" His copy snapped his head at him, and his eyes were the only immediate difference to the younger version aside from size. They were colder. Angrier. Darker._

" _I'm you, dumbass." The other him growled. "I'm everything you keep locked away." The darker Crue stepped closer to the original, the Faunus meeting himself with equal distance. "I'm the reason you jump. I'm the reason you hurt. I'm your Remorse."_

 _Remorse lifted up his sleeves, showing hundreds of bloody cuts. "Every scar you ever made. I remember all of them. Because I caused them." Crue sucker punched the darker version of himself, anger welling up deep inside him._

" _Ha! The little bitch over in the corner could hit harder than that! If you think I'm bad, I can't wait for you to meet_ _ **Wrath**_ _!" Remorse punched back, Crue standing stone faced with the blow. "You're just lucky I'm not too focused on you right now."_

" _What do you mean?" Crue asked. On cue, another being emerged from the explosion. This was not another version of Crue, but rather it was a beast not unlike a Beowulf. It was taller than an Alpha, and a deep brown in colour._

 _It lacked the bone plates that would signify it as a Grimm, but it was not any less terrifying than the real thing. "The fuck is that!?" Crue exclaimed, taking a boxing stance, realising he had no weapons on him._

" _That's the Wolf you idiot!" Remorse told him. "Ever since you came to this shithole of a world, that thing showed up." His eyes landed on the Faunus' ears. "And I'm guessing they're the cause."_

" _So what, that's my instincts or something?" Crue asked, as his darker version took a small pocket knife out. The blade was tiny, but it was all he had to fight the beast._

" _Or something." Remorse growled, rushing forward and trying to stab the beast. Crue looked down at his hands, realising he was going into this weaponless._

" _Fuck it." Crue decided, rushing in and throwing a punch at the Wolf. It connected with the beasts jaw. The Wolf snapped at him, baring it's fangs and growling fiercely. Crue gave a crude imitation of the growl back._

" ' _Grraragh' yourself." The Faunus uppercut the Wolf, as his darker half slashed at its hind legs with the penknife. The Wolf howled, swinging its long tail, catching Remorse and sending him crashing into the original._

 _They both grunted, letting out the same curse as they hit the ground. "FUCK!"_

 _They stood up, glaring at each other. "Piss off. I can do this myself." Remorse warned. "Have been for two fucking months."_

" _This is my head. I'm staying. And why don't you use something bigger than a fucking penknife." Crue growled back._

" _You should've used something bigger to try and kill yourself with then." Crue stiffened, before decking his darker half. Remorse fell to the ground, grunting as the knife fell from his grasp._

 _Crue grabbed it instantly, pushing his darker side to the ground and holding the knife to his neck. "Give me a reason. Please, give me a reason." He begged._

" _You need me." Remorse grunted out. "I'm your coping mechanism dumbass. If it wasn't for that jackass over there…" His head nodded towards the snarling beast. "Well… Let's just say you'd've gone down a_ _ **much**_ _darker path."_

 _Images flashed before Crue, each of them sending chills down his spine. Crue, standing atop the corpses of team JNPR, Pyrrha's head impaled on her own spear. Team RWBY, broken and battered, as Crue ravaged their leader. Velvet, dead on the ground, her ears ripped off with Crue's own teeth. Neo, nothing remained of her. After stabbing her through the heart, Crue tossed her off the cliff of Beacon to a pack of Grimm._

 _In every image of what could have been, Crue was wearing the same, unnerving smile. A smile that showed no remorse for his actions, instead showing some twisted form of pleasure that he was deriving from such acts._

 _Crue blinked back tears as he stared down at his evil half, who was now laughing loudly. "YOU NEED ME!" Remorse roared in laughter._

 _The Faunus glared down at himself, his eyes brimming with a fury so destructive it could reduce a man to ashes. "Not now I don't." Crue grunted out, gripping the blade tight and making a fist. The Faunus slammed the fist into his dark half, knocking him out instantly._

 _Crue stood shakily, staring at his unconscious self. The darker part of him seemed to fade away, leaving only the original and the Wolf. Crue turned to face what he believed to be his instincts, who seemed to be eying him greedily. "So." He stated, glancing at the penknife in hand. "You're supposed to be the wild side of me?"_

 _He threw the blade away as he cracked his knuckles, walking towards the beast which roared and sprinted at Crue._

" _ **How about I tame you?"**_

…

"Crue?"

Crue jerked awake, seeing carpet. He blinked groggily a few times, pushing against the ground to sit up on his knees. "Who…?" He groaned out.

A pair of silver eyes appeared before him, blinking questioningly. Crue blinked back, taking off his glasses to look at the person clearly. "Ruby?" He asked through a yawn.

"Morning sleepyhead." Ruby smiled. Crue managed to smirk back, but he noticed the lack of daylight when he glanced out the window.

"Morning?" He asked, noting Ruby was still in her pyjamas.

"Welllllll…" Ruby drawled out awkwardly. Crue grabbed his scroll out of his pocket to check for himself.

"It's quarter pas-" "Shh!" Ruby quietened him, glancing around to see if he had woken anyone. Crue did the same, checking the bunks, seeing that all of them were occupied. Yes, he included Ruby's bed in that, as Zwei was currently curled up in a ball on the pillow.

"It's quarter past three!" Crue hissed. "I got here like three hours ago!"

"I know." Ruby whispered back apologetically. "But you said you would tell me what was wrong when you got back. And, I fell asleep by accident. So I set an alarm for when I thought you'd be back." She explained.

Crue sighed, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and index finger. Luckily, it was dark, which meant Ruby couldn't see how hungover he currently was. Crue could see just fine, being Faunus, and could see the concern in Ruby's silver eyes.

"You promised." Ruby reminded him.

" _I promise."_ Crue remembered the last words he spoke to Neo, and subsequently, the last words she spoke to him. " _Go to Hell."_

"Crue?" Ruby shook the boy lightly, causing him shiver.

"You're right. I promised." He smiled awkwardly, regret hidden behind bright white teeth.

Ruby smiled back, standing and grabbing Crue by his hand, dragging him upwards. There was something humorous about the situation, a barely five foot girl lifting a six foot three young adult to his feet.

Crue made sure he had his scroll on hand as Ruby dragged him from the room. He followed in silence, trying to think of how he would explain to the young girl that he and Neo, that he and _Polly,_ were no longer together.

"I figured this would be a good place to talk about it." Ruby told him.

The reaper brought him to the same roof that she had found him the night he almost jumped. Thinking of _that_ night made him remember the dream he had. The images that his darker half had shown him came back in full force.

Crue closed his eyes and steadied his breathing, Ruby's grip on his hand remaining strong. "Just, tell me when you're ready." Ruby spoke softly, sitting down on the ground, inviting Crue to do the same.

He did so, sitting cross legged, staring out at Beacon, his mouth opening and closing several times over, trying to get words to form. Through all his attempts to speak, Ruby remained ever patient, only ever increasing her grip to remind him that he was in no hurry.

Eventually, Crue took a deep breath, and closed his eyes. "Me and Polly, we broke up." There, he said it. He turned to Ruby to see her reaction, the girl letting out a soft gasp as she absorbed the information.

"Oh, Crue." Ruby said sadly. She leaned forward, wrapping her arms around the boy's neck and bringing him in for a hug. Crue hugged back tightly, willing his eyes to remain dry. "That's why you were crying?"

"Yeah." Crue nodded. "I- We- There was an argument." He settled on. He wasn't sure what Neo was going to tell Cinder and her crew, but she assumed she would tell them a half truth, how she saw Crue fighting on the train.

"When did you break up?" She asked him. "If, if you want to talk about it I mean."

"It's fine Ruby. I might as well get it off my chest now." Crue sighed, closing his eyes and looking to the sky, seeing the shattered moon above him, and realising that his heart probably looked quite similar to the celestial body right now.

"It was earlier. Technically it was yesterday." He told the small girl. Ruby sidled up close to him, breaking the hug and leaning her head against his shoulder. "After I crashed the bike, I saw her. And she was upset."

"I asked her what was wrong, and she said that I was always putting myself in danger. And that I cared too much about others for my own good." He gave a short, fake laugh. "Can you believe that?"

"She's not wrong." Ruby muttered. Crue looked at her incredulously. "Crue, you're awesome. Ok? But, you don't really look out for yourself too much. And it's not a bad thing you care about us, but, we can take care of ourselves."

"I know that Ruby." Crue whispered, pulling her close. "I know. But that's not gonna stop me." He smirked lightly, the young reaper smacking him on the arm with a playful smile.

Her smile dropped as she looked at the Faunus seriously. "Are you gonna tell the others?" She asked him.

"Well, I'll have to, won't I?" Crue sighed. "Either they find out off me, or off someone else. And I'd rather it be me." Crue suddenly thought of something.

"Don't treat her badly for this, alright?" He requested. Ruby looked at him curiously. "You guys were friends with Polly when we were dating. Don't be mean to her or anything just cause we broke up."

"Why would we do that?" Ruby asked.

"Well, you mightn't." Crue sighed. "But, I'm not sure how the others will react. Yang won't try and beat her up or something, will she?" Because he already knew how that would go.

Ruby snorted at the question, before realising that there may be a possibility of that happening. "I'll tell her not to." She reassured him.

Crue let out a shallow breath, feeling Ruby shiver next to him. "Come on." He stood, bringing her up with him. "It's late, and you're cold."

"It's not that la-" Ruby's statement was cut off by an adorable yawn. The yawn finished, and Crue looked down at her with a raised eyebrow. "Fine." She pouted.

The two walked off of the small roof where they had their first meeting, making their way back to the dorm. "Are you gonna be ok?" Ruby asked quietly.

Crue sighed, looking to the ceiling as they walked. "I don't know." He told her honestly. "Guys are weird. A day after a break up I'll be fine. In a week I'll be drinking, and in a month I'll be depressed."

"Jesus." Ruby breathed. Crue looked to her with incredulity in his eyes. The young girl noticed his stare. "What? You always say it. I don't know what it means, but I thought it suited the situation." She told him.

Crue began laughing lightly. "I really need to stop cussing around you. You're too damn impressionable." He rubbed her head, ruffling her already messy bedhead.

Ruby glared up at him halfheartedly. Crue found the sight adorable. The two reached the dorm room, Crue taking out his scroll and opening it slowly. They peeked their heads in, checking everyone was still asleep.

When it appeared to be safe, they opened the door fully. Crue was about to roll under Weiss' bed once more, but Ruby stopped him. "Hold on." She whispered. The Faunus did as instructed, curious as to what the young reaper wanted.

He watched as Ruby grabbed her blanket off her bed, rushing over to her dresser and taking out something, then rushing back over to Crue, and having him sit against a wall. Ruby sat down next to him, wrapping the blanket around the two of them.

"Here." She said, breaking a cookie in half. Crue took a half, looking at Ruby with confused eyes. Ruby noticed this, and explained. "If I was ever upset, I'd want someone to do this with me. So, I hoped it'd work for you."

Crue's eyes softened, and he grew a small smile. "It's working great." He wiggled an arm behind her back and pulled her close, the small girl giggling quietly all the while. They both ate the cookie in silence, Ruby letting out a long, and adorable, yawn when she had finished hers.

She rested her head against Crue's shoulder, closing her eyes. "I'm too tired, and you're too comfy." She mumbled.

Crue laughed lightly, and angled himself so she would be more comfortable. Ruby appreciated the gesture immensely, snuggling into the boy. "Thanks, Crue." She murmured, before drifting off.

Crue looked down at her sleeping form, the images that he had seen in his dream being pushed back. "No Ruby…" He rested his head against the wall and closed his eyes. "Thank you."

...

" _I feel like I'm going to die."_ Crue thought. He opened an eye, seeing Yang staring down at him, her eyes red as ruby. Who, coincidentally, was cuddled up to him under the blanket. "Oh. _This again?"_ He sighed mentally.

"You said bring my scroll next time." He told her. She cracked her knuckles, but did not make an action to attack him. Probably due to the fact Ruby could also be hurt.

"What was it this time?" Yang asked.

Crue looked down, frowning lightly. He muttered something, his excuse going unheard by Yang. "What was it?" She repeated.

"...broke up…" Was all she heard. She squinted for a minute, trying to understand what the words meant. Lilac eyes widened in realisation, as she let out a soft "Oh."

"Yeah. _Oh._ " Crue muttered.

"I, guess I can look past this. But only because of your reason." Yang told him, half sternly, half compassionately.

"Hey, it was her idea." Crue chuckled. "She said if she was ever upset, that this is how she'd want to be cheered up. I think we should both remember that."

Yang scoffed lightly. "Like I already didn't know." She grinned at him. Crue grinned back despite himself. "But, for real." Her tone became serious, causing Crue to stiffen.

"Do you want me to beat her up?" She asked.

"No!" Crue barked, causing Ruby to stir next to him. Both blondes froze, waiting for the younger girl to drift back off. Ruby nuzzled into the crook of Crue's neck, letting out a content sigh, falling back asleep.

"No." Crue whispered, once he was sure the reaper was in the realm of dreams. "It wasn't a bad break up." Yang raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "Ok, all break ups are bad. But it wasn't because she was cheating on me or something."

"Then why'd you break up? You two were great together." Yangs words caused Crue to frown visibly, his head lowering as he stared at the ground. "Ah! I'm sorry! I didn't mean-"

"I know what you meant." Crue cut her off, not meeting her eyes. He sighed, closing his own. "Remember when I crashed the bike?" He didn't see, but he assumed Yang nodded. "I saw her after that. She said I was always putting myself in danger for others, and that she couldn't take worrying whether or not I'd come back alive after doing something like that."

"She's not wrong." Yang muttered. At this, Crue looked back up at the blonde, levelling her with a glare. "Sorry Crue. But, you don't really look out for yourself too much. Like, when you went after Ruby. I don't think you were thinking about yourself then. And it's not a bad thing you care about us, but, we can take care of ourselves."

Crue let out a dry laugh. "Ruby said the exact same thing." He paused. "Well, she did mention that I'm awesome beforehand."

Yang let out a laugh at this too, shaking her head. "Guess so. You are pretty awesome. I mean, that thing with the bike yesterday? Amazing!" Her exclamation caused Ruby, as well as the other members of her team, to stir.

"What time is it?" Weiss yawned, sitting up in her bed and stretching her arms out, looking like a textbook princess in the morning light.

"Ten." Yang called to her. "Don't worry, no classes." The heiress posture visibly slackened, tension in her shoulders melting away like snow in the sun.

"Why are you up so early then?" Weiss questioned, seeing the brawler standing before her own. "And why are you there?"

"Sibling senses were tingling." Yang told her, causing Crue to chuckle. His noises made Weiss blink, and lean to the side, seeing Crue and Ruby beneath the blanket.

"Why haven't you killed him yet?" She asked Yang. A perfectly valid question, given the circumstances.

"He's, got reasons. And I know he isn't trying anything. He likes being alive." Yang told Weiss.

"That last one's debatable at the moment." Crue sighed. Weiss arched an eyebrow, looking from the Faunus to Yang, who shook her head.

"Crue? Has something happened?" The heiress asked slowly. Crue closed his eyes, breathing softly.

"Yeah, but before I explain, can someone wake up Blake? I don't want to have to say this three times in a row." Crue requested. Yang nodded, going over to wake the Faunus.

If Weiss had thought something was wrong previously, she was assured of it now. She momentarily wondered if Crue had gotten some bad news about his family, before recalling he had no family. A fact they learned after Ruby had mentioned her uncle, and asked Crue if he could remember his family.

If she recalled correctly, a rather large group hug had come to being after that. Weiss normally wasn't one to join in on such things, but she felt compelled to in that instance. She was brought back to the present by a shrill hiss, courtesy of one Blake Belladonna.

She glanced over at her teammate, seeing that Yang had decided to wake up the Cat Faunus by having the ever adorable Zwei lick her face. Blake shot out of bed like a rocket, jumping to the other side of the room and taking shelter in Ruby and Crue's blanket.

The action caused Ruby to awaken, yelping in shock as she felt another presence next to her. From Yang and Weiss' perspective, they saw Blake poking her head out between Ruby and Crue's, only now realising where she was.

"What is going on?" She asked, looking between the two people she was incidentally sharing the blanket with.

Ruby leaned forward, meeting Crue's eyes. "Are you going to tell them?" She asked. Crue nodded, taking a breath and closing his eyes.

"Ruby and Yang already know, so, might as well get this over with." He opened his eyes, looking to his side, seeing Blake and Weiss staring at him. "Me and Polly broke up."

The light gasps from the two of them caused Crue's head to fall. "Alright!" Ruby suddenly exclaimed, causing all occupants of the room to look at her in confusion. "As team leader, I order a group hug on Crue! Now!"

Yang was the first to comply, leaping over from Blakes bed to Crue's side, throwing an arm around the three already in the blanket, squeezing them tightly. Weiss got out of her own bed, not as enthusiastically as Yang, but sat down next to Ruby, reaching her hand behind them and resting it on Crue's shoulder.

Crue let out a sound somewhere between a laugh and a sob. "You guys are awful." He said with a smile. The members of RWBY looked at the male with wide smiles.

An "Arf!" interrupted the scene, as Zwei bounded over, jumping onto Crue's lap and looking up at him, his tongue lolling out.

"You're the worst of them all." Crue said, scratching behind the corgi's ears. The dog whined appreciatively, curling up into a small ball on the Faunus' lap.

Said Faunus felt someone scratching his own ears, and looked over to see Weiss turning red. "Sorry. I saw you scratch Zwei and my hands copied you." Crue would have rolled his eyes, were it not for how pleasurable the scratching was.

"You can stop now." Crue requested. Weiss complied, still red in the face, resting her hand on Crue's shoulder instead. There was silence in the room, all of it's occupants lying against one another comfortably.

"Hey, guys." Crue began, causing the girls to look at him with raised eyebrows.

"Thanks."

...

"Hey Crue. How're you doing?" Jaune greeted, as team RWBY and Crue sat down at the breakfast table.

"I'm, alright. Thanks." He smiled half heartedly at the leader of JNPR, the rest of his team looking at the new arrivals.

Jaune raised an eyebrow at Crue's words, but before he could say anything, Yang coughed, drawing their attention. "So, you guys still going on that mission of yours? Or is it cancelled cause of the Breach?"

"Professor Goodwitch said that we will still be going on our mission. It will just take a little longer to set up." Pyrrha informed them.

"We have yet to learn what huntsman we will be shadowing." Ren spoke calmly, drinking from his mug of green tea.

"Yeah! I hope it's someone awesome!" Nora bounced in her seat.

"Well, we got Professor Oobleck. So you can't do much worse." Blake reasoned. You could almost hear the cry of the despair come from the green haired man in question, as he proclaimed the word 'DOCTOR!' loudly from his office.

"Unless it's Professor Port." Ruby said. Everyone at the table shuddered, minus a certain Wolf.

Crue was staring past team JNPR, the way that he had sat down giving him full view of the entrance to the cafeteria. It also meant he could see every person that entered the building. Even if he didn't want to.

His eyes moved downwards, focusing on the grains of the wooden table. He willed himself not to look back at the entrance, where the girl with raven pigtails and jade eyes was trying to do the same.

"Crue?" Pyrrha's voice snapped him out of his focus. He glanced up, seeing Pyrrha looking at him worriedly, the rest of her team doing the same in curiosity. He scanned RWBY's faces, seeing they all wore a look of concern.

"Yes Pyrrha?" Crue asked calmly.

"Are you, feeling alright?" It was in that moment, that Crue remembered what the spartan had told him before she unlocked his aura.

" _It would certainly bring us closer as friends, but other than a small emotional connection, nothing serious would change." "I wouldn't know for certain what you are feeling, but I would have a small inkling if you were feeling upset and trying to hide it."_ Her words echoed in Crue's mind, as he groaned lightly, gripping his hair with his hand.

"Can someone else tell her? Doing it three times in one day is bad enough." His head hit the table lightly, all members of team JNPR now looking at him with worry. Ruby leaned across the table, beckoning Pyrrha closer.

The young leader whispered into Pyrrha's ear, the spartan frowning for a moment, before her mouth fell open in shock. "Oh my." She breathed. The red head looked to the rest of her team, leaning over to Jaune first and telling him what was going on.

Blue eyes widened, as Jaune looked upon Crue with pity. After Jaune was told Pyrrha turned to Nora. "Nora. I need you to know, that this isn't something you should shout out in shock after hearing it."

The ginger tilted her head inquisitively, as Pyrrha whispered into her ear. Nora let out a loud gasp, and slapped her own hand against her mouth. Her eyes stared at Crue in disbelief, who's forehead was resting on his arm as he stared at the table.

Nora turned to Ren, who raised an eyebrow in questioning, the ninja being the only one at the table who was unaware of what happened to the Faunus. Nora leaned in close to Ren's ear, and told him what happened.

It was to the surprise of everyone at the table, that Nora did not shout what happened into Ren's ear, as many of them expected her to. Ren's face did not show any emotion or shock at the news, but he did bow his head lightly to Crue.

"So now you all know." Crue said, rising his head, seeing the nods of team JNPR. "Any comments?" He sighed.

The four looked between each other, wondering if anyone would speak. "Uh." Jaune began, all eyes going to the leader of JNPR. "That's rough buddy." The females, as well as Ren, looked at Jaune with expressions that clearly read 'Really?'.

Then, to the surprise of them all, Crue began to chuckle. "Thanks Jaune. Hit the nail on the head there." Crue laughed, Jaune's words causing him to recall a certain scene from a show he watched as a child.

"Could be worse." He said, his shoulders falling as he stared at the table.

"It could?" Weiss questioned.

"Yeah." Crue nodded. He snapped his fingers, pointing to Nora. The girl took this as a green light to list off how much worse things could have gotten.

"She could've been turned into the moon, she could've been cheating on you, she could've lied because she was secretly the princess of a far off kingdom who feared assassins would try and dispose of you because it would destroy her, she could've been part of the group that caused the Breach and she broke up with you because you were fighting in it."

Nora took a large gasp of air, and her head fell to the table. "And that's about it." The rest of the group turned from the ginger to look at Crue, his expression unreadable.

"Yeah. So I guess I got off pretty lucky huh." His voice was as flat as possible, no emotions shining through with his words.

"Do you want me to break her legs?" Nora asked the Faunus, raising her head off the table.

Crue gave a small chuckle. "Nora, considering when I first met you, you wanted to break _my_ legs, it means a lot that you'd say that." He told her. "But no. I don't want any of you fighting her. Just because we broke up doesn't make her a villain."

" _It's the rest of this whole fuck up that does."_ Crue thought, idly poking at his food. "Just, treat her like you would if we never dated." He didn't want any violence to spark between his friends and Neo. He knew what she was capable of.

"What if she tries to talk to us?" Weiss asked.

Crue sniggered lightly, knowing Neo talked to no one. Except him. And dammit now he's sad again. "Talk back? Treat her like you would Emerald. And, try not to mention…" He trailed off, not wanting to say the word 'us' aloud.

"We will respect your wishes." Ren spoke. The others all nodded in agreement.

"Thanks." Crue smiled, but sighed. "I'm gonna go to the training room. Don't wait up for me." He stood from the table, leaving his tray of food completely untouched.

The others watched him go, concern written all over their faces. "Should we…" Jaune began, wondering if they should follow the heartbroken male.

"No." Ruby said, almost immediately. Everyone turned to her, as her silver eyes followed Crue's back. "He wouldn't like that. He's hurting. But he's strong, so he's able to keep it together around us. Right now, I think he just wants to be alone."

Ruby's surprisingly wise words were true, as Crue wished for nothing more than the ground to open up beneath him and swallow him whole. Alas, he had no such luck, walking on his own towards the Combat Simulation room.

He had been to the room once before, when he was feeling a rage like this. During the previous time, Crue had come to the realisation just how much he left behind in his old world. And much like that time, the **Wrath** that filled him was insurmountable.

He mimicked his actions on that day, setting the battle droids to the highest level, and waiting. He cracked his knuckles in preparation, not having Setanta in his possession when he entered. Not that that mattered.

The buzzer counted down, and the droids sprung forward, their focus on Crue. On the side of the room, Crue's aura gauge popped up, still using the generic male profile. The bar that showed his aura reserves was changing at a rapid pace, a clear indication of how unbalanced Crue's soul was at the current moment and time.

Crue roared, as his fist came into contact with the head of a droid, denting the metal and cleaving the head right off. The other bots, lacking the feelings that require shock, went on unperturbed, their fists flying at Crue.

In a flurry of ducks and punches, Crue took down three more robots, his mind drawing a blank for anything other than the words " _FUCK YOU!"_ On repeat, directed at both the robots and the 'Author'.

A droid got a lucky punch off on him, clocking him in his cheek. Crue's eyes stung, the pain, while not very great, almost became a catalyst for his tears to flow. Instead of crying, Crue grit his teeth, and threw a rocket of a haymaker at the bots chest.

The force of the punch sent Crue's arm clean through the robot, it's battery held in the Faunus' outstretched fist. Crue brought his fist back, the droid falling to the floor. He turned to the two remaining robots, neither of them reacting to their fallen companion.

The two droids lunged forward, one to the left of Crue, and one to the right. Crue ducked under their punches, and grabbed the two robots by their expressionless faces. His grip cracked the black visor of the robots, before slamming the two of their heads together, creating a shower of sparks.

Crue panted, staring at the fallen robots before him. "That, didn't help." He watched as a different set of bots appeared, all of them holding brooms and dustpans and various other utilities. They sweeped up the remnants of their brethren, leaving the floor clear.

Crue walked over to a wall of the room, leaning against it and sliding down into a seating position. "Fuck." He curse, letting all of his emotions return. "Fucking fuck."

He slammed the back of his head against the wall, in an attempt to clear his mind. The action did nothing but give him a damn headache. "Fuckety fucking fuck." He stood shakily, trying to will himself not to break down and cry.

He exited the simulation room, looking around to see if there was anyone else about. When the coast proved clear, Crue exited the room, head held down and his hands in his pockets. "I need to get comfort clothing." He muttered to himself.

As he walked, eyes staring at the ground, he felt himself collide with something. "Hey! Watch it!" The person he walked into exclaimed.

"Yeah. Whatever." Crue responded indifferently, walking around the person. He felt a hand grip his shoulder and spin him round, causing him to look up and see who it was he had walked into.

A set of indigo eyes glared at him confusedly. "The Hell is up with you?" Cardin asked. Crue blinked, not responding for a moment.

"Why does it matter?" He asked the beefy boy.

"Cause if you walked into me and I shouted like that you would've kicked my ass without a second thought." Cardin told him, crossing his arms. "So the Hell is up with you?"

Crue looked at the boy confusedly, wondering if he was actually serious. He decided there would be nothing wrong with actually telling the truth. "Girlfriend broke up with me."

Cardin's eyes widened slightly, more than likely in surprise at the fact Crue had acquired a girlfriend. Cardin huffed lightly, eyes on the ceiling. He then broke his pose, and patted Crue's shoulder awkwardly.

"Shit's rough." He said shortly. Crue's eyes widened behind his glasses, unable to believe Cardin was being somewhat polite with him.

"Thanks." Crue spoke.

"Don't expect me to treat you like this all the time." Cardin warned. "You get one, and just cause of this. You're still a jerk of a Faunus." The auburn haired boy smirked lightly.

It actually managed to give Crue a chuckle. "Wouldn't have it any other way." He thought for a moment. "Cardin, why do you hate Faunus?"

Cardin face morphed into a scowl. "You don't have to tell me." Crue said quickly.

The bully turned to face the wall for a moment, before sighing. "Schnee ain't the only one with enemies."

Crue understood what he meant immediately. He didn't know the context, but he assumed that it had something to do with the White Fang. The Faunus copied the gesture Cardin had performed earlier, patting the boy on his armoured shoulder.

"Shit's rough." Cardin showed at ghost of a smirk at his own words being used.

"This doesn't make us friends, you Faunus fuck." Cardin grinned, stepping away from Crue.

"I sure hope not, you racist bastard." The Wolf Faunus smirked back. The two enemies went their separate ways after that, Crue feeling surprisingly better.

"Can't believe that fuck made me feel better." He laughed silently. He went to return to the cafeteria, but saw a head of green hair exiting the building. Crue turned on his heel, making a beeline for anyone other than Emeralds line of sight.

He aimed himself towards the dorms, hoping that he would go under the radar from the girl's blood eyed gaze. He was not so lucky.

"CRUE!" Emerald sprinted to the Faunus, the boy letting out a breath through gritted teeth.

"Emerald, I really am not in the mood." Crue said, turning round to face her. He did not even get to blink, before a hand slapped his cheek.

He blinked twice, before slowly turning to face Emerald, her red eyes staring at his as the slap had knocked the glasses clean off. "I-." Crue did not know what to say, the action having caught him completely off guard.

"This is about Polly, isn't it?" He stated.

"Gee, ya think?" Emerald said rhetorically, as Crue bent down to retrieve his glasses.

"What did she tell you?" He asked slowly.

"Does it matter? You broke her heart!" Emerald exclaimed. Crue noticed people beginning to stare. Crue's own heart began to clench painfully.

"Yeah well, hers isn't the only one not in one piece." The Faunus told her, causing Emerald to blink in surprise.

"What?"

"That's why I asked what she told you. I want to know what she said happened." He explained.

Emerald crossed her arms, sneering up at Crue. "She said you had a fight." " _Physical."_ "And that you both said some stupid stuff." " _I said it."_ "And then you said you were through, because of, look she didn't go into reason ok?" Emerald huffed.

"Most of that is true." Crue sighed, leaning against the wall of the dorms.

"I know that! Do you have any idea how late I was up consoling her with ice cream!?" Emerald smacked Crue's shoulder. The blow did nothing pain wise, but cemented her words.

"You helped her?" Crue asked, somewhat surprised.

"Of course I did. It's what girls are supposed to do. Mercury was no help. He tried to hit on her the moment she explained you had broken up." Crue's fist clenched at that, then released immediately, realising he had no say in who flirted with Neo.

"She busted his balls pretty bad. That also probably helped." Crue let out a short, dry laugh. Then again, he didn't need to worry about anything like that.

"And Cinder?" Crue questioned. Emeralds wince told him everything he needed to know.

"She's, uh, not good, with stuff like that. So she left it to me." Crue feared that Cinder did more than simply leave Neo in Emeralds care.

"I didn't want to end it." Crue told Emerald.

"Then why the Hell did you?" The dark skinned girl demanded.

"N-" Crue caught himself, almost about to say 'Neo' instead of 'Polly'. "Polly didn't go into reason. I'm not going to."

Emerald frowned. "Why not?"

"Why should I?" Crue growled. "Polly was closer to you, and she didn't tell you. Why should I?" He repeated.

He walked away from Emerald, back towards the dorms. "Hey! I'm not done with you yet." She called, stomping after him.

"Oh really?" Crue responded, spinning on his heel and towering over Emerald. The girl froze in her tracks, not expecting the Faunus to react. "Well I'm done with you."

Crue left Emerald staring after him, entering the dorm rooms. The mint haired girl stamped her foot in annoyance, turning and going back to her own dorm.

"Damn jackass." Emerald grumbled, stalking away, several people giving her a wide berth.

Back in the dorms, Crue was repeatedly banging his head against the wall of the hallway.

"God. Fucking. Dammit. You piece. Of motherfucking. Shit." The Faunus cursed out the 'Author' for putting him through this.

"I get to feel a fucking sliver of happiness, and what do you do?" Crue rested his head against the wall, his previous burning wrath now simply simmering.

"You fucking piss on it, kick it the fucking dick and then stamp on it." The Faunus lightly kicked the wall before him.

He sighed, walking away from his small anger management course with the wall. "I need to sleep."

He made his way to RWBY's dorm, eyes on the ground. His feet turned on autopilot bringing him to the room that he had been living in for the past two months.

He took out his scroll, opening the room, seeing that there was nobody there. Well, no human.

"Arf!" Zwei barked, jumping off of Blakes bed and running up to Crue, panting as he put his front paws on his trousers.

"Hey Zwei." Crue greeted, reaching down to pet the dog. "Don't know why I was scared of you in the first place."

Crue closed the door, Zwei following after the boy as he rested his back against the wall, sliding down it.

Zwei yipped at him, instantly attempting to jump onto his lap, back legs wiggling uselessly.

Crue placed a hand on the dogs rump, pushing him up onto his lap. Zwei barked in happiness, circling on the Faunus' lap until he became comfortable.

He eventually settled down with a contented whine, as he rested his head on his paws.

Crue began scratching the dogs ears, as he took off his glasses and closed his eyes.

As he felt himself drift off, he could only think but one thing.

"Don't give me another one of those symbolism dreams, jackass."

* * *

 _MERRY CHRISTMAS YA FILTHY ANIMAL!_

 _That probably means something else to the Faunus of Remnant. (Totally gonna have Crue say that at some point)_

 _Sorry for the late chapter by the way, had exams this week. Hopefully they went well._

 _Anyway, Crue has some interesting dreams. That was kinda a shot I'm the dark, hope you enjoyed it. There might be more of that, maybe._

 _Anywho, hope you enjoyed the story, if you did, let me know, and as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	16. Dark King

"How could you let this happen?!" Cinder Fall demanded, pacing around her room, leaving light burn marks with every step. Emerald and Mercury simply let her rant, not commenting for fear of losing important limbs.

Neo, on the other hand, stared at Cinder with bloodshot eyes. "You just let him break up with you?" The half-maiden exclaimed. "Why didn't you stop it?" Neo glared up at Cinder, now by technicality her employer.

"Uh, Cinder." Emerald murmured. "That, isn't really how relationships work." Cinder turn on her heel to stare at the mint haired girl, who withered slightly under her gaze.

"Yeah." Mercury pitched in, redirecting Cinders anger. "If someone says 'it's over' or 'we're through' or 'not happening', not much you can do about it."

"View must be great from that glass house of yours." Emerald muttered. "But he's right. It's not Neo's fault, Crue broke up with her."

The small mute found herself unable to meet Emerald's eyes at that statement. Cinder grit her teeth and growled, before pointing to the door. "Out. All of you." Her lackeys looked at each other confusedly, which only served to anger her further.

"OUT!" The three ne'er-do-wells quickly scattered, leaving Cinder to huff alone. She let out an infuriated cry, the bed nearest to her becoming singed. She took a deep breath, and composed herself.

"We need intel on him." She spoke to no one, reassessing her reasons for Crue and Neo's relationship to herself. "He is an unknown, even the people here don't know about him."

With an aggravated sigh, Cinder walked over to her dresser. She opened a drawer, retrieving a dark and corrupted mirror. She took a breath through her nose, and stared at the reflection of her eyes. _"Mirror, Mirror, I need to call, show me the most wrathful of all."_

Her face distorted, swirling into a deep black whirlpool. The swirling began to slow down, and an image came into view. It was not Cinder's face, and it was also not what she was expecting.

"Cullen?" She murmured, seeing the Faunus she had just been thinking about in a rather, tame position. He was sleeping, slumped against a wall, with a small dog curled up on his lap. Definitely not the intimidating persona he had been portraying so far.

"What on Remnant?" Cinder breathed, unsure as to why she was currently seeing Crue, and not who she intended to see. She shook her head, raven hair passing briefly in front of her eyes. With a brief flick of her hand, the image disappeared.

"It must be because I was thinking of him and Neo." She dismissed, staring at the mirror once more, the reflection of herself reminding her of the male she just saw. "Damn it." She shook her head, getting the Faunus out of her mind.

She stared at the mirror for quite a while, before sighing. "Why do I need to rhyme to activate it?" A serious design flaw in her mistress' otherwise perfect device.

" _Mirror, Mirror, don't be mean. I need to see the Grimm Queen."_ The mirror swirled once again, the colours becoming darker the longer it changed.

A pale face and black eyes appeared before Cinder. "Cinder." The face spoke slowly, unamused.

"My lady." She bowed her head lightly. "I regret to inform you that my transmission is not one of good news."

Salem's eyes squinted at Cinder, her red pupils narrowing in on the girl. "Oh my! The Princess has made a mistake! What a tragedy!" A voice came from outside Cinder's view from the corrupted mirror.

"Tyrian!" Salem snapped, a whimper originating from the same person. Salem turned back to Cinder, the eyes of the Grimm Queen staring down the half-maiden. "What have you to report?"

Cinder hesitated briefly. "The infection failed." Salem's eyes narrowed, awaiting her explanation. "There was, an unknown." Cinder tried to explain the situation in the same way that she experienced it first-hand.

"An unknown?" Salem questioned, unamused.

Cinder nodded. "Yes. He prevented me from uploading the virus. He stalled for time until General Ironwood arrived."

"And you could not defeat him?" Came another voice, one that sounded as though a stick had been shoved up a certain hole.

"Watts." Salem warned, turning her attention back to Cinder. "Who was he?"

"He called himself, The Wolf." Cinder explained, wincing at how this must appear to her Queen. "There was no way I could have known he would be there. Even Torchwick did not know anything about him."

"And you let him prevent you from uploading the virus?" Salem questioned flatly.

"I did not intend for that." Cinder seethed quietly. "He had information. He knew the General was approaching, and he knew about Emerald's Semblance."

"The hallucinating one?" Salem's eyes narrowed.

"Yes. Between him and Cullen, it seems as though every-" "Who?" Salem cut her off.

Cinder held in a groan. "Crue Cullen. An insufferable Wolf Faunus who I have no information on. I tried to get more by having Neopolitan date him, but he broke up with her!"

"Ah, young love." Tyrian cackled through the magical mirror. Cinder's amber eyes twitched at his words.

Salem stared at Cinder calculatingly. "Where is this, Crue now?"

"Sleeping, with a small dog on his lap." Cinder answered immediately. When she received silence from the other end, she realised how this sounded. "I saw him on the mirror."

"You what?" Salem said, uncharacteristically interested.

"I saw him on the mirror." Cinder repeated, an eyebrow raised at Salem's reaction. "I was trying to contact you, but he showed up instead."

"What did you say to summon him?" Salem questioned, nay, demanded Cinder.

"Uh." Cinder didn't know what caused her Goddess' sudden interest, but she dared not go against her. "Mirror, Mirror, I need to call. Show me the most wrathful one of all."

Salem leaned back into her crystal throne, an unnerving smile on her face. "So, he kept his word." She brought her hands together, fingertips pressing against each other. "He made me a Wrath, and a King."

"Ma'am?" Cinder questioned.

"Thank you for this information Cinder. Do be sure to keep an eye on him. Inform me the next time he is out of the safety of Beacon." Salem said, with a wave of her hand.

"But I-." The connection between the two mirrors broke. Cinder let out an aggravated sigh, as she rested the mirror on her bed. "What is so important about him?"

…

The very same question was asked by Watts. "Ma'am, you seem unusually happy about this man. Who is he? And who kept their word?"

"And you seem unusually inquisitive, Watts." Salem replied coolly. Watts looked back to his scroll, as Tyrian let out a cackle.

"Well, if he's annoying Cinder I like him. Can I hunt him down too? Please, my lady." The psychotic male pleaded.

"He shall not be hunted. He will come to us eventually. And if you must know, Watts," The man in question looked up to his Queen, his moustache bristling. "I made a deal."

"With the Devil?" Tyrian chuckled.

"Not quite." Salem replied, regarding Tyrian with an unamused stare. "He called himself, 'The Author'. And he said he would bring me another piece for my game." She shook her head.

"It appears dear old Ozpin's analogies are rubbing off on me." She mused. "He said he would help my cause, in return, he wanted to write about it, and create some of his own Grimm." The two men at the table exchanged glances of confusion, and a third man, who had been asleep until then, opened his eyes to give his opinion.

"Strange request." He said, his voice deep and gruff.

"Quite, Hazel." Salem agreed. "I must test our new addition. Perhaps an Alpha would suffice." Silence fell over the table, Salem trying to decide what trial she would put this, Crue Cullen, through.

"My lady." Hazel said, his eyes still closed.

"Yes, Hazel?" Salem waved a hand to him.

"Will you tell Cinder she doesn't actually need to rhyme to activate the mirror?" He questioned.

Salem let out a light chuckle. "No, Hazel. A Goddess needs her entertainment, after all. Perhaps after all of this, I shall read the book that The Author is writing. It should be interesting to see our victory from an outside perspective."

"Now, for Crue."

…

"Achoo!" Crue sneezed, waking both himself and Zwei up. The corgi let out a yelp and scurried away from Crue, hiding under Blakes bed. "Excuse me." Crue sniffled, rubbing his nose.

"Ugh." He groaned, standing up and dusting off his trousers. "Wonder what exposition went on while I was asleep." He stopped rubbing, and looked across from where he was sleeping. "That's where I left my glasses."

He walked over, grabbing them and looking at his own reflection. Crue blinked several times, as his eyes appeared to have changed colour. From their usual steely blue, to a dark gold. He closed both eyes and rubbed them.

When he opened them again, they were back to their normal colour. Crue stared at himself for several long moments. "There is some fuckery going on here that I am not aware of."

"Arf!" Zwei barked in agreement, poking his head out from under the bed. Crue looked to the dog, putting his glasses back on and clicking his fingers. Zwei rushed over, as fast as his little legs would carry him.

Crue pet behind the dogs ears, the corgi's tongue lolling out happily. "Yeah, I know how that feels now." He mused, scratching his own ears. He stopped scratching, stretching his back and hearing his joints pop.

"Now, let's go see what the author has in store for me today." He walked to the door, turning and seeing Zwei trying to get onto Blake's bed. The Faunus chuckled. "She is not gonna be happy when she sees that."

He shrugged, and left the dog to his own devices. As he walked, he mulled over what he was thinking beforehand. " _I broke up with Neo. I need to come to terms with it."_ He clenched his fist, and felt the button for his claws.

" _Hurting myself isn't the way. I'm not going to give that fucking Regret or whatever the hell his name was another scar."_ His fists unclenched. " _And I'm not giving in just so you can have some more drama for your story."_

Crue checked his scroll to see if any messages had popped up. There were two. One from Ruby, and one from… "Ozpin?" Crue muttered. He checked the headmasters message first.

"Mr. Cullen. Please meet me at the Beacon cliff. I have something important I need to discuss with you." Crue read aloud. "Well doesn't that sound fucking ominous." He sighed.

He checked the other message. "Hey Crue! Port is having us all gather in his room for something. Thought you should now." Another message was under it. "*know"

"I'll check that after I talk to Ozpin." He decided, pocketing the device. "As long as it doesn't get me killed."

He stopped walking. "That is entirely likely actually." He shook his head. "No. I'm not gonna die. Don't feel like it." He marched determinedly to the cliffs of Beacon.

He saw the aged professor waiting for him by the cliff, sipping from his omnipresent coffee mug. "Professor!" Crue called. The man coughed lightly on his coffee, causing Crue to wince.

"Crue." Ozpin greeted, wiping his mouth with his sleeve. "Thank you for calling out to me."

"Haha. Yeah…" Crue laughed awkwardly. "So, why am I here?" He asked, stepping next to the professor.

Ozpin nodded, taking out a teachers scroll. "Well, Crue. It has come to my attention that we have yet to officially register you in Beacon." To prove his point, he brought up Crue's profile. A blank slate. "That is why you do not have a picture whenever you are chosen to fight."

"Huh." Crue said, not really able to say much else.

"And now, I have a question for you Crue." Ozpin said, typing a bit more on his scroll. "What is your landing strategy?"

"My what?" Crue said, almost afraid of the answer.

"How do you survive a drop from a great height?" Ozpin asked.

"Don't get dropped from a great height." Crue responded instantly. His answer caused Ozpin to chuckle.

"Well, let's see how that works out for you." He pointed downwards. Crue followed the direction, and felt his eyes widen. Underneath him was a metal plate with Beacons insignia. Crue knew it better as the Launchpad that served to initiate the Beacon, initiation.

"YOU MOTHERFUUUUUUUUuuuuuu…" Crue was flung midway through his curse, flying into the distance of the Emerald Forest.

"Hm." Ozpin hummed, swirling his mug. "That'll teach him to make me waste coffee." He walked away, taking out his personal scroll and composing a message to his colleague.

…

"Ah, Ozpin says it has begun." Port chuckled. "Ehem!" He cleared his throat, causing the classroom before him to fall silent. "Huntsman, Huntresses, Ladies." He drawled, winking at an exchange student with raven hair and amber eyes.

The girl in question shuddered at the implication. Port had called for a meeting of the students, both Beacon and beyond. "Now, as for why I've gathered you here. As teachers, we do have a life outside the classroom."

Several mock gasps sounded, causing Port to chuckle. "Yes, yes. Quite unbelievable. But they do exist. And during this life, I have made a bet with our dear headmaster." He pressed a button on his desk, and a screen engulfed the wall Port stood before.

"Ooh! A movie!" Nora exclaimed in glee, grabbing a bucket of popcorn from nowhere and beginning to munch on it.

"Not quite Ms. Valkyrie." Port laughed. "My bet was that a certain student could complete the initiation on their own." A few people gasped, real gasps this time.

"Who did you pick?" Jaune asked the professor.

Port smiled knowingly. "I chose a man who I believe you are all well acquainted with, and has shown the traits valued in all huntsman." The screen showed the calm nature of the Emerald Forest, the leavings blowing gently.

"I chose-" "-KER!" Ports speech was cut off abruptly, and several people winced at what they saw. A person entered the frame, and immediately collided with a tree.

"Not… off to the best start." Port muttered, as Crue slipped from the tree, groaning all the way down to the ground.

…

"Ozpin, I am going to kill you." Crue muttered, standing roughly. "If you fling someone into a forest, MAKE SURE THEY HAVE THEIR WEAPON!" He sighed, and then jumped back to the tree as an explosion erupted next to him.

Once his heartrate was down, Crue saw it was one of the Beacon lockers. "I hate you." He muttered, jumping down from the tree and making his way over to the locker. He opened it up, grabbing his hurl.

He noticed that the weapons he stole from the White Fang were also there. He hummed in thought, before grabbing the pistol. "Nothing that bad should be in the forest. At least, nothing I haven't killed before."

He slammed the locker closed, and jumped onto the nearest tree, using his Semblance and running up it. "Alright, so where's the ruins?" He questioned aloud, scanning the horizon for the ancient building.

"Well, Beacon's that way." He stood on the topmost branch, squinting his eyes. As he examined the skyline, he heard something that made his blood boil. The beating of wings assaulted both sets of his ears, as Crue turned from his place on the tree, seeing a Nevermore flying towards him.

Before he let his Wrath take over, his creative side did. "Hehe." Crue chuckled, as he began jumping up and down on the branch. "Lightbulb." As the Nevermore neared, Crue jumped back, falling from the tree.

He grabbed the branch he had been jumping on, and pulled it down with him, using his Semblance to connect to the one below him. "I've watched enough cartoons to know this'll work." He cancelled out his Semblance, and shot skyward thanks to the branch.

He flew past the Nevermore, the Grimm squawking in surprise. The momentum did not last long, and Crue felt himself falling back to Remnant. However, it was as intended. Crue landed on the back of the Nevermore, and dug Setanta into its back.

The beast cried out in pain, and attempted to shake the Faunus off. "Good luck with that!" Crue taunted, twisting his sword into the dark flesh. The Nevermore screeched, and changed direction of its flight.

"Huh." Crue wondered, twisting his sword another way. The Grimm screeched again, and changed flight once more. "Holy shit I'm piloting a Nevermore." Crue laughed, before the Grimm began to dive-bomb.

"No! Wait! Shit! Shit! Shit!" Crue stabbed further and pulled back, hoping it would cause the birdlike Grimm to pull up. "Wait. Stabbing it won't make it more alive!"

Crue leaped from the bird at the last second, piercing a tree with Setanta to keep off the ground. The Nevermore crashed to the ground, turning up soil and more trees. The Faunus let out a low whistle, and jumped down.

"Damn. It was fun while it lasted. Guess I'm not good at flying." He shrugged, changing Setanta back to its hurley form and swinging it over his shoulder. "So, what else ya got?"

A roar from off to his right answered him. "DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND RHETORIC?!" He exclaimed, sighing and smacking his face with his palm.

"Alright, fuckin' bring it." He said, throwing his arms wide and facing the direction the roar came from, feeling the ground beneath him shake.

Two seconds later, an enormous Grimm burst through the forest, prompting Crue to say the following. "WHAT THE SHIT IS THAT?!" The Grimm, not responding to that question, raised one of its mammoth fists, and swung at Crue.

The Faunus barely had enough time to bring his hurl up to block, when the fist made contact. The force behind the blow was too powerful, and sent Crue flying into a tree. The Faunus coughed roughly when his head bounced off the bark.

"Fucking trees." Crue spat out, shaking his head. The Grimm beat its chest loudly, waiting for the opponent to make a move.

...

"What's a Beringel doing in the Emerald Forest?!" Coco Adel exclaimed, her eyes wide in concern for the first year. Seated next to her, Velvet looked at the screen in silent horror.

The Faunus' expression was matched by the rest of the class, all of them wide eyed and open mouthed at the faceoff between Crue and the Grimm.

"I do not know." Port said. "I should call Glynda." He grabbed his scroll and began to type rapidly.

"Wait! Look!" Ruby shouted, pointing at the screen. All eyes turned, focusing back on the video before them.

...

"I am really, going to kill Ozpin now." Crue growled out, as he stood shakily. He grabbed Setanta and pointed it at the gorilla Grimm before him. "You know what? Fuck this." He changed it into its sword form and swung it once in an arc, before stabbing it into the ground.

He left the sword there, and punched his knuckles together. Cracking his neck, he took a stance. "Alright. Bring it on you DONKEY KONG REJECT!" With that Crue leaped toward the Beringel, arm cocked backwards.

The Grimm did not expect the Faunus to fight weaponless, and so took a haymaker to it's face. It growled in pain, stumbling back a step or two, before swinging its massive arms at Crue. The Faunus placed two hands on an arm, and then leaped back towards the Grimms head, hands intertwined and held high.

Crue slammed them down on the top of the Beringels skull. The beast wavered, before slamming into Crue's side with one of its fists. Crue flew from the beast, crashing through a tree with the force of the blow.

Crue stood, shaking the dizziness from his head. "Fucking King Kong wannabe." He spat, some blood mixing with the saliva. He could sense his Aura was still intact however. He considered grabbing his hurl, but before he could make a move, the Beringel grabbed a tree and ripped it out of the ground, hurling it at Crue.

The Faunus leaped high, soaring over the tree and landing in a crouched position. The Beringel slammed its fists against the ground, then beat his chest and roared at Crue.

For some reason, the action caused Crue's blood to run cold. " **You think you're the Alpha?** " He cracked his knuckles, and beat his own chest in retaliation. The Grimm roared again, this time at the fact he was being challenged.

" **I'm the Alpha here! Let me show you why.** " With that, the two combatants surged forward while roaring, and arm cocked back on each. " **I hope your ready for this.** "

 **[Ready For This - All Good Things]**

The two punches collided, and sent a shockwave through the small clearing they were fighting in. Neither fighter reacted to the punch, but Crue smiled dangerously. He changed his fist into an open palm, and gripped the Beringel's fist.

He grabbed the arm with his other hand, and then roared. Though no one could see it, Crue's eyes flashed dark gold for a moment. Using every ounce of strength he had, Crue lifted the Grimm by its arm, and then slammed it into the dirt behind him.

...

"Did he just suplex a gorilla!?" Yang exclaimed.

...

Crue slipped the pistol from his pocket and fired into the Beringels burnt skin, causing it to roar in pain. The Grimm flung the Faunus from his fist. Crue spun in the air, and landed feet first against the trunk of a tree.

" **Not this time.** " He sprung forward, above the Beringel as it still struggled to stand. Crue unloaded his magazine into the back, aiming once more for the burnt part of the beasts flesh. The Beringel roared and slumped to the ground, weakly attempting to move.

Crue stood on its back and aimed his gun at the back of the Grimm's head, a fanged smile plastered on his face. " **Now who's the Alpha?** "

...

* _BANG*_

The classroom that had been watching Crue's battle was silent. Even Cinder found herself as speechless as Neo, who was also watching the battle. Seeing that mad smile Crue wore made her regret her decision of breaking up with him even more.

Port felt his mouth hanging open, having just witnessed a first year student take down a Class C Grimm with just his fists and a pistol.

The silence was eventually broken, by none other than Ruby Rose. "Holy shit."

An instant cacophony of cheer broke out, started by team RWBY, and then joined in by the majority. Save CMET and Cardin, the latter just realising how many times he could've died.

"I knew I made a good choice." Port smiled.

...

"Take that." Crue panted out, sitting against the decaying body. "You… jumped up, curious George." Crue let himself breathe for the moment. "Ok, not as good as the others but…"

He suddenly felt himself falling backwards, the Beringels body completely disintegrated.

"Gah! Awh! It's in my mouth!" He spat, trying to get the particles of dead Grimm out of his mouth.

"That, was disgusting." He said, wiping his hands on his jeans and pulling his sword from the earth. "If I see another one, I'm using you." He told Setanta. "And now I'm talking to my weapon. Great. Ruby would be proud."

He would almost swear he heard the girl in question groaning about that statement. He shrugged off the feeling and jogged towards his goal, the ruins. "That was one big monkey." Crue mused.

"Why do I get the feeling it wasn't supposed to be there." He frowned at that thought, assuming that the Author had something to do with it.

"I'm gonna pick up the pace before something else shows up." Crue decided, crouching down momentarily and leaping to the treetops, using his Semblance to jump from tree to tree.

"How much farther?" Crue muttered, as he leaped higher than normal to get a glimpse at the ruins. "There!" He exclaimed to himself, seeing the slightly broken building not that far away.

Gravity brought Crue back down, further than intended. Crue glanced down, seeing he had missed a branch. "Sonuvabi-" The impact of the ground cut him off, causing all those that witnessed it to wince.

"How can I be so badass, and so incredibly fucking lame at the same time?" He muffled into the dirt. He pushed against the ground to prop himself up. A quick scan of his surroundings proved there were no Grimm.

He stood up fully, brushing off some dirt and fixing his tie. "Every girls crazy bout a sharp dressed man." He hummed, walking on, swinging his hurl in one hand.

"I can hoof it from here. Sure, it's only a bit of a walk." Crue murmured. A howl sounded behind him, and he quickened his pace. "A fair ol' jog to be sure." He heard several twigs breaking, and turned to look at the source of the noise.

A Beowulf slinked from the bushes, only it was bigger than normal and had larger bone plates. "An **Alpha…** " Crue trailed off, his eyes flashing gold once more. The Alpha howled, but was cut of midway by a bullet through it's skull. " **I'm the Alpha.** "

He turned, leaving the decaying Grimm and slotting Setanta on the magnetic plate on his back. He sprinted toward the ruins, not wanting to draw any more attention to himself. As he ran, he saw the ruined castle in the distance. He also, saw an Ursa.

The Ursa turned, hearing something approaching. Its eyes locked on the Faunus moving rapidly towards it. It opened its mouth to roar, and found a pistol being shoved in and pointed upwards.

"Not in the mood." Crue said coldy, as he pulled the trigger, and continued running.

...

"Damn. He took down that Ursa like it was nothing." Yang said, impressed at Crue's performance so far.

"I taught him well." Port said, thumbing his moustache.

"But, Professor Goodwitch teaches combat." Ruby said, confused. Port did not reply, instead making sure to not make eye contact with the silver eyed girl.

"Ms. Valkyrie, may I have some of that popcorn?" The large bellied professor requested.

...

"I do not know where to go from here." Crue muttered, peering over the edge of a cliff. "Wait. YOU DIDN'T EVEN TELL ME WHAT THE FUCK I WAS SUPPOSED TO DO!" Crue cursed Ozpin.

"YOU FLUNG ME INTO THE EME-" Crue stopped, breathing deeply. "Tóg go bog é. Tóg go bog é." He looked around, heading to the nearest stone construction. "Looks like fucking Stonehenge." He muttered.

As he approached the ancient building, he saw several artefacts set upon pedestals. He slowed down as got nearer. "Hope I'm not interrupting your chess match!" Crue called out, somehow assured Ozpin would hear him.

He examined the chess pieces, the pieces in question being coloured black and gold. "There's probably meant to be some symbolism here or something, but I really don't care." Crue sighed, reaching out to grab a random piece.

A roar from behind him stopped him from picking the piece up. Turning, Crue saw what could only be considered a small army of Grimm at the treeline. His face turned a rather amusing shade of pale. He was just thankful there were no more Beringels.

"Well. Wouldja look it. A fuckton. Of Grimm." He said, his hand reaching behind him, fondling for a chess piece. He felt his hand grasp one, and gripped it tight. "I will, be leaving now."

Apparently, the Grimm did not agree with that, choosing that moment to all begin sprinting towards Crue. "SHIIIIIIIIIIIIITTT!" Crue exclaimed, running in the opposite direction of the Grimm.

He ran until he saw the same ruins that he had encountered when he first awoke in this world. The sight caused Crue's mind to grind to a halt, and his body to do this same. His heartbeat against his ribs, blood rushing through his veins. His grip on the chess piece in his hand tightened.

He glanced down, seeing what it was he had picked up.

The Black King.

"Well. If that ain't symbolic." Crue muttered, placing the king down on a piece of rubble. He cracked the joints in his neck, grabbing Setanta from its place on his back and switching it to its sword form.

In his other hand, he held the pistol he had stolen but a few days ago from the White Fang. "Kinda wish I had brought the other stuff." He shrugged. Crue turned to face the oncoming army, unflinching.

" **If you want to retreat, now is your only chance.** " Crue said, raising his blade at the Grimm and his gun alongside it. The Grimm did not stop, not caring for the Faunus' words. " **Very well. I'll show why I'm the Alpha.** "

His eyes wandered the chess piece. " **Why I'm the King.** "

...

"Well. It seems I was correct." Port said slowly. Nothing could be said, for the class remained speechless at what they just witnessed. Well, most of the class.

"Seen it." Nora said unashamedly

"Nora." Jaune hushed.

"What? We did. That's where we first met him. Remember?" Nora whacked Jaune roughly on the head. "He was standing on a literal mountain of Grimm. And now look." Nora gestured to the screen, where Crue was currently sitting on the head of an Ursa, the last of the Grimm he defeated to decay.

"He's on a throne of Grimm. He's awesome." Nora's blue eyes lit up excitedly.

"He's done this before?" Ruby asked.

"Yes." Ren spoke, putting a hand over Nora's mouth, wincing as Nora stuck her tongue out. "Although last time was reasonable. Apparently he does not like birds."

There were several decaying Nevermores on the pile Crue was sat on. "What's he got against birds?" Yang questioned Ren.

The members of JNPR all glanced at each other, sharing an unspoken agreement. "We don't know." Ren said casually. "A phobia, perhaps?"

The audience turned their attention back to the screen, where Crue was still sitting on his apparent throne of Grimm.

…

"Maybe, I should take up smoking." Crue panted out, standing up from the dead creatures of darkness. "I mean, with this lifestyle, I'll probably die before cancer could develop." He nodded to himself.

"Yeah, I'm gonna start smo-" That train of thought got cut off as Crue slipped on a decaying Beowulf, and tumbled down the mountain of dead Grimm. "Owww…" Crue breathed out, once he hit the ground.

"Ok. No smoking." He compromised. He shakily stood, walking over to the piece of rubble that he had left the chess piece on. "The Black King." He muttered, picking it up.

"Dark King. That sounds badass." He mused, walking towards the ancient ruins where he knew RWBY and JNPR fought together. " _Maybe I should've went with that instead of The Wolf."_ His Faunus ears twitched in indignation.

"Nah." He decided, jumping onto the side of the cliff, and using his Semblance to run up the vertical drop. "Ok, starting to love this now." He thought, feeling the sensation of his Semblance in his feet. He neared the top of the cliff, and crouched down.

Crue uncoiled himself with a great leap, landing on the edge of the cliff, standing tall. "Sweet." Crue said, a smirk on his face.

"Well do-" "AAH!" Ozpin attempted to greet the boy, but not having made his presence known earlier startled the Faunus. Crue wavered on the edge of the cliff, one hand over his heart, the other pointing his gun at Ozpin.

"Ozpin," Crue panted out. "I swear, I am going to kill you." He reoriented himself, and placed both hands on his knees, breathing heavily.

Ozpin chuckled. "And how will you do that?" He pondered.

"Through inaction." Crue responded snarkily.

"Hm. That may actually work." Ozpin hummed. "Looks like I owe Port twenty Lien."

"What?" Crue spoke, halting the headmaster in his tracks.

"Ah. Well, you see, this initiation happened to coincide with a bet between myself and Professor Port." Ozpin told Crue, backing away all the while.

Crue's eye twitched, briefly flashing gold. "YOU FLUNG ME INTO THE FOREST FOR TWENTY LIEN!?" He exclaimed, gripping his pistol tighter.

"And a months supply of coffee." Ozpin added, as though that fact would remedy the situation.

"FUCK THE COFFEE!" Crue exclaimed, causing Ozpin to gasp and clutch his chest as though Crue had just implied his mother and a pig had gotten to know each other rather intimately.

"Don't you dare sully the name of coffee in this Academy." Ozpin jabbed a finger at Crue warningly.

"IT'S HOT BEAN WATER!" Crue insulted. Ozpin, for all his stone faced demeanour, looked outraged at Crue's words.

"Mr. Cullen." Ozpin said calmly, with a voice that would send chills through most people's spines.

"Professor Ozpin." Crue said, with the exact same voice. The two stared each other down, Crue only now realising that the headmaster was taller than him. The Faunus did not back down however.

"Congratulations on completing initiation. Please go to Professor Ports room. He will be waiting for you there." Ozpin instructed.

"As long as you don't fling me there." Crue grumbled, walking past the aged man back towards Beacon. "I'm guessing there won't be a ceremony." He called back to him.

With several more curses and grumbles, Crue made his way into the halls of Beacon, direct to Ports classroom. "If I go flying one more time. I will stay where I land." He murmured, as he opened the door to Ports class.

An instant surge in noise overwhelmed him, causing him to wince and cover his wolf ears. Crue cracked open an eye, seeing several people cheering at him. "The Hell is going on?" Crue asked, cleaning out his ear as he walked down the stairway.

"That would be my doing, my boy." Port said joyfully. "You see, I was showing the class your initiation. Quite a spectacle, if I do say so myself." The portly man hummed.

Crue's eyes narrowed, but before he could berate the man about the bet, he realised something. "Wait. You showed the school my initiation?"

"Well, not quite the school." Port said, looking behind Crue. The Faunus followed his gaze, seeing several teams of people that he recognised, and some he didn't.

"That is so cliché." Crue muttered. " _Showing the class the skill of the new student, establishing them as a strong person. God, you sure my name isn't Mary Sue?"_

"Anyway, thanks to you, I am now the winner of the bet!" Port chuckled happily. The mention of the bet caused Crue's ears to twitch.

"About this bet." Crue said, turning around slowly to face the round professor. Everyone in the room could sense the impending storm.

Port could also sense it, and with surprising speed, he announced. "Class dismissed!" And sped from the room. Crue sprinted after him, yelling all the while.

"I AM WORTH MORE THAN TWENTY LIEN AND SOME DAMN COFFEE!" Was all the students inside the classroom heard as they slowly made their exit.

"Always something going on around here." Yang murmured, leaving with the rest of her team and JNPR. "Wonder what'll happen next."

"It'll probably involve Crue somehow." Nora hummed, skipping along back to the dorms.

"What makes you say that?" Weiss questioned the Valkyrie.

"Cause he's become a part of our adventures ever since he showed up." Nora explained, as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. "He's probably had some adventures of his own too."

Said adventuring Faunus appeared just before them, almost crashing into the group of eight due to sprinting around the corner. All eyes widened, as Crue turned back around, pointing from where he came from, and then back to the group.

"I-He-You." He cut himself off, arms hanging limply by his sides. "Port is a slippery bastard." He conceded.

"Crue!" Yang exclaimed, covering Ruby's ears and giving the Faunus a death glare. "You've influenced her enough as it is."

"I have?" Crue said confusedly.

"Well, she did swear in class earlier." Weiss informed him, looking to her leader with an unamused expression.

"You did?" Crue's voice turned stern, as he crossed his arms and stared at Ruby. The young girl gave a sheepish smile.

"Yeah. It was when you killed the Beringel." Ruby explained. " _Oh, that's what it's called."_ Crue realised. "You were like," She pointed her index finger down and raised her thumb. "BANG!"

"Yeah, shame the gunshot covered what you said. It was probably cool." Jaune laughed, recalling the scene in his head.

"Please. It's me. Wherever I go butts are kicked and one liners are said. Of course it was awesome." Crue said with a smirk. " _As much as I hate you, you've got some good one liners."_

The group talked for a bit more, before Crue felt his scroll vibrate. He glanced down, and frowned. "Ozpin again." Crue muttered, checking the message.

"I need to get my picture taken?" Crue read aloud, confused.

"Oh yeah, we all had to." Yang told him, smiling unnervingly wide. "And I think you'll enjoy it." Crue's face turned into a confused frown, unsure as to what Yang meant.

"Yang." Ruby hissed, grabbing her elder sister by the ear and dragging her head down. Ruby whispered rapidly into her ear, causing the brawlers lilac eyes to widen dramatically.

"Uhh. Never mind." Yang quickly walked past Crue, leaving the Faunus looking to the others in confusion.

"What?" He asked simply.

"You'll see when you get there." Ruby told him, walking by the boy, the rest of the group following her.

"I don't know where there is!" Crue exclaimed once the others were out of sight. He growled. "I could really use some Deus Ex Machina right about now!" He tapped his foot impatiently.

A buzzing in his pocket answered his request. "Thank you." Crue said sarcastically, using muscle memory to unlock his scroll. He checked the message, and promptly screamed, slapping his scroll against the nearest wall.

With wide eyes, he regarded the device, now seeing a reversed image of what was currently on screen. "What the hell!" Crue shouted at the 'Author'.

On screen was a rather, interesting picture. A certain rabbit Faunus, wearing naught but underwear. Rather cute underwear actually, but given the circumstance Crue was a bit too preoccupied not analysing the picture. "What in the name of non-existant God is wrong with you?!" He made sure not to look at the picture as he walked out of the dorm building, straight to the one across it.

" _I swear to God I'm going to kill you. I swear to_ _ **you**_ _I'm going to kill you. Don't fuckin' bring Velvet into this you pansy shite."_ Crue opened the door to the second year dorms, and felt a force crash into him.

Two cries of pain echoed through the courtyard. Crue blearily opened his eyes. "What hit me?" He saw a set of bunny ears bobbing swaying in his vision, and realised who he ran into. "Velvet?"

"C-Crue?!" Velvet stuttered, backing up off the boy and feeling her back hit the wall. "W-What are you doing here?" She asked, in a terrible attempt to be casual.

"Velvet." Crue sighed. " _Like a band-aid."_ "I got the picture." Velvet froze, the hairs on the back of her neck going still.

"And I don'-" "It was an accident!" "Beg pardon?" Velvet was completely red in the face as she stared at Crue.

"I didn't mean to send you that. I meant to send you a different picture, but that one was right next to it." Velvet explained.

"Oh." Crue said slowly. "Phew. Wait. What were you going to send me? And why did you have that?" The Faunus questioned.

"I saw a picture of a wolf toy, and I was going to send it to you. Because of when you sent me that picture of the bunny plush." Crue nodded, recalling the picture in question.

"And why did you have a picture like that?" Crue asked. Velvet looked to the ground, scuffing her foot and murmuring. "What?"

"Body positivity." She said a bit louder, only enough so that Crue with his advanced hearing could make it out.

"Oh." Crue said once more. "Well…" " _Don't say it! Don't say it!"_ "You looked great." " _FUUUUUUUUUUCK!"_ Velvet turned even redder, and Crue had a significant blush on his face. "Here." He said, unlocking his scroll and handing it to Velvet.

The brunette looked to Crue with a confused expression. "So you can delete it." Velvet's eyes widened, as she nodded, opening the message application and deleting the picture from Crue's side of the conversation.

"Thank you. Crue." Velvet said, relief flooding her, and her cheeks returning to their normal shade. As she exited the message, she glimpsed the one Ozpin had sent the boy. "Oh, you need your picture taken. Ozpin put me in charge of that not too long ago."

"You don't say." Crue muttered, glaring at the sky.

"Yep. Come on, I'll get you set up." Velvet nodded to the main academy. "Oh, and, please don't tell anyone about that." She pleaded with Crue.

"Of course I won't." He smiled gently. "If I did, eighty percent sure Yatsuhashi would kill me." Velvet giggled lightly and nodded. "Besides, it'd be a dick move."

Velvet did not agree with the wording, but nodded in thanks. "It's this way." She began walking towards the main hall, Crue jogging after her and falling into line beside her.

" _Try something like that again, and I will personally kick you in the fucking balls."_ Crue thought, glaring balefully at the clouds in the sky. " _And F.Y.I., forcing someone into another relationship is not a good way to help them get over their old one!"_

He shook his head, talking amiably with Velvet, both straying far from the topic of the accidental picture. Instead, Velvet told Crue about what she thought of his initiation.

"You saw that?" Crue winced, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly.

"Yeah, it was quite impressive. Much different to my initiation." Velvet told him.

" _Ooh. Lore."_ "What was yours like?" The Wolf Faunus asked.

"Well we weren't flung off a cliff for one thing." Velvet giggled lightly, while Crue groaned. "Sorry. We were actually sent into a set of caves on the other side of Beacon. We had to travel to tunnels in the dark. Well, the others did. Lucky for us huh."

Crue nodded, knowing Velvet was referring to the ability for Faunus to be able to see in the dark. "Yeah, I forget about that most times actually." He shrugged. Velvet looked at him with surprised wide eyes.

Noticing this, Crue explained. "It's the glasses." He said, taking off his shades. "They sort of cancel it out. A bit weird, honestly." His companion said nothing, the Rabbit Faunus looking intently at his eyes.

"Uh, Velvet?" Crue said, blinking slowly. The action was enough to get Velvet out of her apparent trance.

"Oh! I'm sorry Crue. It's just, you don't actually show your eyes that often. So, I was trying to remember them." Velvet explained.

"That's fair." Crue nodded, looking at the reflection of his eyes in his glasses. Velvets reflection joined his, her deep brown eyes reflecting in the sunglasses.

Crue looked over to Velvet, meeting her eyes. "Are you standing on your tippy toes?" He asked.

"No…" Velvet murmured. Crue gave a hum of disbelief. "Sure." He made to put the sunglasses back on, instead settling for putting them on his head.

"Why aren't you wearing them?" Velvet questioned the taller Faunus.

"Well, I'm having my picture taken, amn't I?" Crue asked rhetorically. "It's rude to wear sunglasses in professional or important photos."

"You should tell Coco that." Velvet laughed. With that, the two Faunus made their way into the main hall, to make Crue an official member of Beacon. As long as Ozpin had no more bets to make that is.

* * *

 _Yo, I gotta say, Writers block hit me like a fuckin truck. Also, HAPPY NEW YEAR. May 2017 be less of a shitstorm than 2016. Also, speaking of 2016, Crue was not there for most of it. He wound up in Remnant in February of 2016, the 29_ _th_ _to be specific. So he knows nothing about what has happened. Kind of a good thing all everything considered._

 _And, some more detail into how exactly Salem fits into this world. Wrath? Kings? Shifting eye colours? All strange little additions that should not be forgotten. Also, I might start making the chapters shorter, just so that I do more of them. Let me know what you think._

 _Anyways, hope you enjoyed, if you did let me know, and as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	17. Bull, Meet Wolf

A flash went off, briefly blinding Crue. "Son of a bi-scuit!" He exclaimed, lightly rubbing his closed eyes.

"Biscuit?" Velvet giggled from behind the schools camera.

"I'm trying to curse less." Crue explained with a sigh. "Apparently I've been quite influential to Ruby's vocabulary." Once the white spots were blinked away, Crue stood from the stool that was in front of a white background.

"That's sweet." Velvet smiled, going over to a terminal and typing something in. Crue's picture came up shortly afterward, the boy in question frowning at the image.

"I hate getting my picture taken." He mumbled, peeking between Velvet's ears to get a look at the snapshot.

"How come?" Velvet asked, tilting her head upward.

"I always think whatever expression I'm doing looks forced." He rubbed his jaw, the muscles sore from keeping a smile on his face.

"Coco mentioned something about that actually." Velvet said, looking back to the picture. "She said you had a bad case of 'resting-murder-face'."

Crue barked out a laugh, backing away and leaning against the wall of the room. "That's fair." He nodded. " _Although the person I want to murder most is up there."_ His eyes went to the ceiling of the room, staring beyond to the sky.

"All done." Velvet called happily. Crue turned to see his profile, almost completely accurate. "I just need your birthday."

Crue opened his mouth to give the answer, but found it running dry. "Uh…" He murmured, causing Velvet to look at him with wide eyes.

"You don't remember your birthday?" She said in disbelief.

"What? Psh. No. I just… uh…" Crue quickly got out his ID card, the one that was in his wallet the first time he ended up in this world. "Yeah. I was right." He sighed. "13th of March." He checked the year. "Uh. What year is it?"

"115 AVD." Velvet answered.

"AVD?" Crue questioned.

"After Victory Day." Velvet responded in a confused tone. Crue quickly rapped his knuckles against his head. "Oh right. Amnesia. Sorry, I keep forgetting about that."

"It's fine." Crue waved off. "So, what does After Victory Day mean?"

"It's the day the Great War came to an end. This is the Era of Colour, so a new calendar was created." Velvet explained as though she was a teacher.

"Huh." Crue glanced down at his card. "Well, I was born in 98." " _Consistent."_ Velvet began typing into the console, only to stop and turn to Crue.

"Crue, you're 18." She said slowly.

"I'm what?" The Faunus replied, eyes wide. "But I was, hold on." Crue took a moment to try and comprehend the jump in time from when he entered this world. "What month is it?"

"August."

"It's fuc-." Crue cut himself off, once he noticed Velvet stiffen. He coughed once, and started again. "It's August?"

"Yes." Velvet said carefully.

"I didn't mean to shout." Crue told her softly. "I just-. Feckin' Hell. I'm 18. I missed my birthday." He slumped against the wall, the weight of the fact he was no longer in his own world crashing down on him once more.

"Um, don't worry Crue." Velvet attempted to cheer the boy, now technically a man, up. "Maybe you just can't remember it."

Crue let out a small laugh. "Yeah, maybe." Seeing as the mood had significantly decreased, Crue decided it would be best they leave. "Do I have to wait for it to be printed, or what?" He made for the door, Velvet getting up and joining him.

"You'll probably have it delivered to your dorm." She paused as she realised something. "What dorm are you in?"

"Ozpin has yet to give me a dorm of my own." Crue grumbled. "So I'm basically bunking with RWBY." He noticed Velvet's raised eyebrow. "As in, I'm sleeping in the same dorm as them."

"Oh. Did Ozpin put in an extra bed?" The Rabbit Faunus questioned.

"Ha. I wish." Crue sighed. "I've been sleeping under Weiss' bed for the past two months. It's really not good for my neck." To prove his point he cracked the joints there.

Velvet shuddered at the sound. "Um, Crue. Can you, not do that? Please." She requested. Crue looked confused for a moment, before realising what she meant.

"Oh, the cracking thing? Yeah, sure." He agreed, scratching the back of his neck.

"Thank you. I'm sorry, it' just, with the sensitive hearing and all." Velvet apologised, looking down at her feet as she walked.

"It's fine." Crue said immediately, putting his sunglasses back on. "Supposed to give you arthritis or something." He shrugged.

"Really?" Velvet asked, in slight shock.

"Nah." Crue smirked at her. The Rabbit Faunus pouted at her blonde companion. "Old wives tale." Velvet shook her head, her ears bobbing along with the motion.

The two continued on in silence for a brief moment. "Um, where are you going?" Velvet asked.

"Uh." Crue realised. "I don't know. I was following you." His brows knit together into a frown briefly. " _You took that from Jaune and Ruby. Try something original."_

"Well, I was planning to go into Vale with Coco." Velvet informed him. "Would you like to come?"

Crue hummed in thought. "Yeah, sure. I've been meaning to buy some more clothes anyway." He nodded in agreement. "And a sleeping bag."

Velvet nodded, taking her scroll from her pocket and calling her team leader. After a few short moment, Cocos face popped up on screen. "Hey Velv. You coming or not?" She asked.

"I am. I was just wondering if it would be ok if Crue joined us." She angled her scroll so that Crue was in frame. The Wolf Faunus threw up a peace sign.

"Yo." He greeted.

"Hey Crue. Yeah, you can join us. You'll probably be doing some heavy lifting though." She teased. Crue rolled his eyes, the action unseen due to his glasses.

"Sure. Whatever." He shrugged. He saw that coming a mile away.

"Alright, hurry up then." Coco ended the call, causing Velvet to pocket her scroll.

"The next Bullhead is pretty soon. We should get on it." Crue nodded, the two Faunus increasing their speed to get to the docks.

After a short moment, the two managed to get a Bullhead. Crue took his scroll, realising he should probably tell the others where he was going. As he waited for Weiss to answer her scroll, he watched the scenery fly past.

"Crue?" The Faunus glanced down, seeing Weiss looking at her scroll with a raised eyebrow.

"Hey Weiss. Just wanted to let ye know I'm gonna be in Vale." He informed the heiress. " _Man, my accent is coming out more."_

"You are?" Weiss said, her blue eyes blinking in surprise. "What for?"

"Just clothes and shhh-tuff." He switched words mid swear. "Velvets here too." He angled his phone so that the Faunus could see.

"Hello Weiss." She waved at the scroll.

"Hello Velvet." Weiss greeted. "Please keep an eye on Crue. And make sure he doesn't get into any, predicaments."

"Ya know, I'd probably be insulted if that wasn't so true." Crue mused. "Slán go fóill."

"Slon guh what?" Weiss questioned, before the connection was cut.

"Probably going to regret that later." The Wolf Faunus shrugged, pocketing his device.

Velvet stared at the male curiously, who raised an eyebrow and attempted to meet her gaze. "What did you say?"

"Slán go fóill." Crue repeated. "Means goodbye for now."

"What language is it?" The Rabbit Faunus asked.

"Ir-Cel-ish." Crue blanked. "Uh. Not sure." " _IRELAND DOESN'T EXIST HERE WHAT THE HELL AM I MEANT TO SAY!"_

"You don't know what language you're speaking?" Velvet said with surprise.

"Nope." Crue responded with a pop, knocking his knuckles against his head. Velvet looked at him with slight suspicion.

"Have you ever spoken it before?" She asked.

"A few times." Crue answered. "The first was…" He crossed his legs when he remembered the day in question. "The day of the ice incident."

"Ice?" Velvet questioned, before gaining a deep blush and turning to stare out the window. "Oh, right. That… incident." She shook her head lightly, more than likely to get rid of those images. "That was the day before we went on our mission."

"Oh yeah. You missed the dance. So Weiss and Yang had to take over." Crue recalled, rubbing his chin.

"I wish I could've gone." Velvet replied, her ears dropping slightly. "Though, I doubt anyone would have asked me."

"Why? Yatsuhashi would scare everyone off?" Crue asked.

This got a giggle out of Velvet, but she shook her head. "No. Well, maybe. I just don't think anyone thinks I'm very attractive." Crue frowned at her words, and the tone in which she said it.

"If I wasn't trying not to curse I'd be on a damn spiel right now." Crue rested his head against the seat of the Bullhead. Velvet looked at him in surprise.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"What I mean, is that you're fu-ecking adorable." Crue answered earnestly, giving the Rabbit Faunus a blush. "You're easily the second cutest person in Beacon." " _FUCKITY FUCK WHY ARE YOU MAKING ME SAY THIS I MEAN I KNOW ITS TRUE BUT FUCKING STILL!"_

Velvet's face turned red, as the Bullhead finally touched down. The two Faunus got off the vehicle, making their way to the square where Coco was. It was only after they were halfway there, that Velvet finally spoke.

"Second?" She murmured.

"Ruby."

"That's fair."

Crue let out a laugh. "That's really all you had to say?"

"It was a fair question!" Velvet stammered, blushing all the while. Crue simply laughed, as Velvet began ineffectively hitting his arm in an attempt to get him to stop.

A shrill whistle caused the brunette to cease her actions. Both Faunus looked up to see Coco waving at them, wearing her usual attire, her handbag resting on her shoulder.

"Hey Coco." Crue waved, walking up to the second year. "Still as fashionable as ever."

"And you are fashionably late." Coco nodded back. "Hey Velv."

"Hi Coco." Velvet smiled. "Where were you planning to go first?"

"I was thinking ' _Lienys'_." The fashionista replied. A smack caused the two second years to look at Crue, who was dragging his hand down his face.

"Crue?" Velvet asked cautiously.

"Hmm?" He answered.

"Everything, uh, everything ok?" The Faunus asked, looking at her junior in concern.

"Peachy." Crue responded, sighing. " _Really? Lienys. That's the best equivalent to Penneys you could come up with?"_ "Where is the shop?"

"It's down here." Coco turned on her well maintained heel, walking down the street. Crue followed her with a sigh, Velvet right next to him.

"Do you not like Lienys?" The Rabbit Faunus asked.

"It's not that." Crue waved off. "I'm just, mad? I guess." He explained to Velvet. "Like, I feel like I should know this stuff. But I don't. I know I know them, but I don't, remember them. If that makes sense."

"It doesn't." Velvet replied, shaking her head lightly. "But, that might just be your analogy." She smirked playfully at Crue, the man laughing in response.

"Yeah, I was always terrible at those." Crue muttered, scratching his chin. " _I need to shave."_

"Well, gonna slap your face again?" The Wolf Faunus looked up, seeing Coco glancing at him over the rim of her glasses, standing in front of the store in question.

"Nah. Gotta keep the money maker in peak condition." Crue snapped back, smirking at the leader.

"Money maker. Sure." Coco chuckled, walking into the store, the other two following. Crue rolled his eyes behind his glasses, as he looked at the clothes the store had to offer.

" _I wonder what the girls are doing."_ He thought. " _…That was your sign for a cut away."_ Crue continued to walk around, inspecting the clothes. " _I have actually no idea if you cut away just then. Are you always following my point of vi-"_

…

"Alright guys, are you ready?" Ruby asked her team, as they stood outside the exchange dorms, several different items in hand.

"Yeah!" Yang cheered, clutching a bag of marshmallows. The four girls made their way through the dorms, stopping before one dorm in particular. With a glance back at her teammates, Ruby knocked on the door.

"Hello?" The door was answered by a girl in green hair. "Ruby?" Emerald asked confusedly, before seeing the rest of her team. "Weiss? Yang? Black?"

"Blake." The Faunus said in a deadpan tone.

"Right. Blake. Sorry. Um, what are you doing here?" The Mistralian student asked.

"Well, um, is Polly there?" Ruby asked. Emerald nodded, stepping aside for a moment to let the others in.

"Cinder and Mercury stepped out for… a thing." Emerald informed them. She showed them Polly, who was sitting on her bed, hugging her legs.

"Polly?" Ruby called softly. The petite girl jerked her head up in confusion, seeing the four extra people in her dorm.

She turned to Emerald, who shrugged. "Yeah, I don't know what they're doing here either."

"It's because of Crue. We're here to help you feel better." The words surprised both Emerald and Polly.

"But, isn't he _your_ friend. Isn't he?" Emerald voiced her teammates confusion, as well as your own.

"That is correct." Weiss nodded.

"Buuuut." Yang drawled. "You're our friend too." She said, pointing to Polly. "Oh. You too Emerald." The blonde reassured with a pat on the back.

"The point is." Weiss cut across the brawler. "While Crue may be our friend, he is a boy. You, on the other hand, are a girl."

"And girls gotta look out for one another." Ruby smiled.

Polly looked unsure, until Blake stepped forward.

"We brought ice-cream."

…

" _-oint is I need some kind of sign that you're following me, and not off giving exposition or something."_ Crue thought, as he, Velvet and Coco walked through the streets of Vale, bags in hand.

"So, how about coffee?" Coco offered. Velvet made a sigh of content, and Crue gave a noise of contempt. "You don't like coffee?"

"Leaves a bad taste in my mouth." He winked beneath his glasses. "But ever since the damn initiation whenever I think of coffee I think of killing that… What was it? The monkey."

"Beringel." Velvet answered.

"Thanks. That yoke. When I got its, residue in my mouth-awk-the taste is coming back." Crue made a disgusted face, shaking his head.

Velvet and Coco both laughed at his antics, as they led him to a small coffee shop. Crue didn't catch the name, but he assumed it was some form of play on words with 'Starbucks'. He didn't want to know, for fear of wanting to punch something.

"So, what are you guys getting?" Coco asked, sitting down at a table. "I'm just getting straight up coffee."

"I think a cappuccino would be nice." Velvet answered. "Crue?"

"Hot chocolate." Crue noticed the silence that followed his answer, and looked at the two brunettes. "What?"

"It's like, the end of Summer." Coco answered.

"Yeah. And? You guys are getting coffee." Crue replied. "There's never a bad time for hot chocolate."

"He's not wrong." Velvet said, looking to Coco.

The beret wearer rolled her eyes, but said no more. "They'll be over in a while to take our orders."

"Oh grand." Crue said, standing up. "I need to use the loo." He walked away, leaving the two girls looking at each other in confusion.

"The what?" They wondered, seeing Crue walk out of their vision.

"So, inviting Crue along for the shopping trip, huh?" Coco asked her teammate, a smirk on her features.

"I-It's not like that." Velvet stammered. "I had to take his picture, and we were talking, and then I invited him along."

"The blush on your face says there was something else." Coco teased. Velvet's blush grew, as she grabbed her ears, hiding her face with them.

She murmured something that Coco didn't catch. "Sorry? What was that?" The brunette said, a wide smile on her face.

"I said, I accidentally sent a-" "HANDS IN THE AIR!" The two huntresses in training whirled their heads to the entrance, where four men held rifles pointed at the shops clients. The civilians screamed, complying with his orders.

"We need to do something." Velvet hissed, her knuckles white.

"I can't take out my gun with this many civilians around." She grit her teeth, staring at the man who seemed to be in charge. "I don't like that guys hat. Beanies are so out of style."

"That's all you have to say?!" The Rabbit Faunus whisper shouted.

"Check the toilets!" The thug in the beanie instructed. One of the men, who was holding a large pistol, made his way to the shops bathroom.

"You!" Beanie shouted, pointing his rifle at the cashier. The woman behind the counter shuddered, as she stared down the barrel of the gun. "I want you to-" "AAAH!"

All heads turned, as the man who had been sent to inspect the bathrooms was now running out of it, missing his weapon. The leader grabbed him by the collar as he approached. "The Hell is wrong with you!?"

"I-It's h-h- IT'S H-" "Who the fuck…" A voice came from the bathroom, one that Coco and Velvet, as well as the four thugs recognised. "…tries to rob a man while he's taking a piss."

Crue walked out of the bathroom, holding the thugs pistol. He and the main thug stared at each other, the Faunus trying to recall where he knew him from. "…Beanie?"

The leader raised his rifle, pointing it at Crue. "W-What the Hell are you doing here?!" Crue frowned, taking of his glasses and folding them, hanging them from his waistcoat.

"I _was_ here to get a drink." He answered, stepping toward Beanie. "But _now,_ I guess I'm going to play clean up." He stopped walking, and turned towards the cashier.

"Hey." He asked, causing the woman to blink. "If I get rid of these guys, can me and my friends have our drinks for free?" The woman opened and closed her mouth, looking akin to that of a fish.

When she couldn't find any words, she settled for nodding rapidly. "Really? Sweet." Crue jerked his head back to the thugs, breaking into a wide and unnerving smile. His eyes flashed gold as he stared at the Beanie thug.

"S-Stay back! I've got Aura now!" He threatened, pointing the rifle at Crue's head.

"That gonna help ya when you're the only one here?" The Faunus asked. Beanie's eyes widened, turning around to see if what he said was true.

The weapons his group had brought were now comically spinning on the floor, before falling over. Beanie turned back, only to see Crue standing practically right in front of him. " **Run.** "

The thug did just that, sprinting from the establishment with a rather feminine scream. Crue made to rush after him. "Hey! He's gone!" Coco called, standing up and staring at Crue.

"He left." Crue corrected. "Leaving is good. Never coming back? Better. I'll be right back." With that, Crue sped from the coffee shop, running after the thug. He saw him dart into an alley. Crue jumped onto a wall, activating his Semblance and running up it.

Running along the rooftop next to the alley, Crue looked down to see Beanie knocking over several trashcans in an effort to stop Crue from chasing him. " _Poor bastard."_ He thought, jumping down and landing on the man.

The thug let out a cry of pain, as Crue spun him round, slamming him against the wall. "PLEASE! NOT AGAIN!" Beanie begged, holding his hand in defence.

"Where's the real heist?" Crue asked.

"I-I don't-" Beanie was cut off by Crue slamming his head against the wall.

"Bullshit. You were going to rob a café in broad daylight. You're nothing but a distraction." Crue's eyes were a dark gold as he stared down the man. He sniffed the air, looking down and seeing a dark patch on the man's trousers. "Really?"

"White Fang!" Beanie whimpered. "White Fang set us up with the weapons. They're planning something big!"

"WHERE!?" Crue roared.

"The shipyard!" The thug cried. "Their leader is there too!"

"Adam?" Crue said in a hushed voice. His mind flashed, seeing Adam stabbing Blake, and cutting off Yang's arm.

"Go." Crue ordered, throwing the man from the wall, sending him sprawling onto the hard concrete. "And don't go committing any more crimes! Then I won't have to come after you!"

Beanie ran down the alley, getting as far away from The Wolf as he possibly could. Crue took out his scroll, calling his locker, and then Velvet. "Velvet?"

"Crue? Are you ok?" Came the Faunus' voice.

"Peachy. But I found out there's a bigger thing going down." He informed her. "Beanie said there was a White Fang operation going down at the shipyard." He heard her gasp. "I'll be fine on my own, I just wanted you to know."

"We're coming with you." Came Coco's voice through the scroll. Crue frowned at that, but saw no way he could disagree.

"Alright. I'll meet you there." Crue cut off the scroll, as his locker came crashing down into the alley. He opened it, and was about to grab his things, before he stopped. " _What're the chances Cinder is at this?"_

He shook his head. "If I see them, I'll just pretend I didn't." He grabbed Setanta, and slammed the locker shut. He looked down at his hand, seeing the pistol he had stolen from the thug. He then looked to the ground, seeing the rifle Beanie had dropped.

He picked up the rifle, and stared at the locker. "Hehe. Lightbulb."

…

"Hurry up! We need this Dust moved yesterday!" Adam Taurus shouted at the White Fang members before them. They all saluted him, and hurried with their operations. The terrorist group moved around the shipyard, while Adam stood upon a gangway, overseeing the operations.

"Well done Adam." Cinder Fall cooed, watching as the workers quickened their pace. "This should be more than enough than to make up for the setback of the breach."

Adam growled at her tone, but said nothing. "So, all this is for the Vytal festival?" Mercury inquired, leaning on a railing and overseeing the workers.

"Correct, Mercury." Cinder acknowledged. "The plan is to set charges and blow the Dust crystal that shall be holding Amity Colosseum. The chaos it will create should be sure to attract Grimm."

"So, I take it you'll be blowing it _after_ me and Emerald have gotten out of there." Mercury questioned. When Cinder didn't respond, it made him understandably anxious. "Cinder?"

Cinder was not listening to Mercury, rather, she was trying to hear… something. Glancing down, Cinder saw that several Faunus, those with animal ears, were also looking around. "Do you hear that?"

 **[Flight of the Valkyries – Wilhelm Richard Wagner]**

"INCOMING HOSTILE!" A member cried, pointing to the sky. Everyone looked in the direction that the Faunus pointed out, and promptly found themselves in disbelief.

Riding atop what appeared to be a missile, was a man, standing with his arms crossed as the projectile sped towards the shipyard.

"Binoculars! Now!" Cinder instructed, holding out her hand. The item she requested was put there immediately, and she held them up to her eyes, looking at the incoming missile.

"You've got to be kidding me." Cinder growled, almost melting the object in her hands.

"What is it?" Mercury asked, readying to fight.

"We need to go." Cinder said, walking away.

"What? Why?" The assassin briefly turned to Adam, who shrugged.

"Because of who's on that locker." Cinder told him. Mercury stopped walking.

"You think it's someone we can't take?"

"No, it's someone we can't let know we were here." Cinder responded, pausing briefly to look back at the oncoming adversary. "It's Cullen."

…

" _I DID NOT THINK THIS THROUGH!"_ Crue screamed in his head, as the locker he was riding on began to descend rapidly, aiming for a group of White Fang. Crue leaped from the locker, as it crashed into the ground, causing a shockwave that sent many Faunus flying.

He landed on the ground, and swung Setanta around, sending any nearby White Fang flying. "Now, I don't know why you're here." Crue said, grabbing the rifle he stole from Beanie and spraying it. "But I'm not just going to let you get away with it."

"You'll never stop us from setting charges on Amity!" A random grunt exclaimed, shaking his fist at Crue. The Faunus blanked, rubbing the bridge between his nose.

"Alright. Now I know. Thank you random grunt number 64." Crue said sarcastically. He sprayed the rifle once more, causing the surrounding White Fang to duck for cover.

"Where's your leader!?" Crue roared, ditching the gun once it ran out of ammo and switched back to Setanta. He swung, knocking three White Fang together. He jumped back, as the ground before him lit up with bullets.

He switched Setanta into its sword form, blocking several other White Fang as they swung cutlasses at him. He kicked one of them in the stomach, sending them flying. He broke out of the block, slashing horizontally, and causing the two grunts to fall back.

Crue turned round, and promptly felt his eyes widen. Several White Fang stood before him, all of them pointing rifles at him. "This… would be an excellent time for the cavalry."

Bullets flew, but not from the White Fang. The terrorists found themselves being mown down by a hail of lead. Crue turned to see Coco, holding a now smoking mini-gun. Next to her was Velvet, holding some of the grunts weaponry, as well as a box on her hip.

"Bout time!" Crue called, waving at the two huntresses.

"Do you know how hard it is to run somewhere carrying this?" Coco gestured to her weapon, which was now pointed at Crue.

"Point taken." The Faunus responded, moving out of the way of the heavy gun. The two huntresses joined Crue on either side, looking at the tide of White Fang before them. "Here." Crue gave Velvet his other rifle, gripping Setanta tightly.

"So, nothing but mooks?" Coco checked. "I called the police, and Beacon."

"Seems that way." Crue said suspiciously, holding his sword vertically, as his eyes scanned the crowd of White Fang. " _Where are you?"_

"Why aren't they attacking?" Velvet whispered. Crue took off his glasses and turned them round so he could see behind him.

"DUCK!" He exclaimed, dropping the glasses and swinging round. The brunettes did as instructed, and heard a ' _CLANG'_ reverberate through the shipyard. Looking up from the ground, they saw Crue holding his blue blade against one that was blood red, the opposing blade just before where Velvet's neck was.

The Faunus that attacked him was clad in a black trench coat, and snarled at the Faunus below him. With a heave, Crue pushed him off. "He's mine!" Crue exclaimed, rushing after the leader, and leaving the other two to deal with the grunts.

"Crue wait! That's-" Velvet was cut off when the White Fang began attacking. Crue slashed at the newcomer, as he backed away, parrying every blow.

"I'm yours?" The Faunus called cockily. "I'm already taken."

"Blake isn't yours asshole!" Crue roared. His words caused him to freeze, and Crue took the opportunity to change his weapon back into a hurl, and smack it into the side of his stomach. "Get up! Adam!"

Adam did rise, but when he did, he felt his instincts scream at him. He looked at the male, finally deciding to meet his eyes. Eyes that were a burning gold glared at him, before they shifted, into a cold steely blue.

The colour change did not help Adam's situation, if anything, the blue seemed more terrifying than the gold. "Who are you?" He ordered.

Crue never was any good at following orders, as he roared, swinging Setanta at the Bull Faunus. Adam blocked it easily, and moved closer to Crue's head. "How did you know about Blake?!"

"NONE OF YOUR FUCKING BUSINESS!" The Wolf Faunus exclaimed, bringing his head back and slamming it into Adams. The two males recoiled, both groaning. "No one wins in a headbutt." Crue muttered, before gripping Setanta tightly once more.

"You know Blake." Adam deduced. "How do you know her? Who are you to her!?" He threatened, brandishing Wilt.

"Not her fucking boyfriend that's for sure." Crue called back, matching Adams pose with his own sword. "And neither are you." Adam twitched, dashing forward. Crue managed to block the swing, but went flying back into an open container labelled 'Lienys'.

"I will interrogate your friends next." Adam said, swinging his katana down and sheathing it, walking back towards the explosions.

Pain erupted in the back of his head when he turned. He winced, checking what hit him. To his surprise, it was a shoe. He looked back to the container, where Crue stood, eyes boring into his very soul.

"Hey, Adam." He said while panting. He held up a cloak that was coloured a deep red. "Olé, bitch." Adam sped towards the cloak- towards Crue, one hand on the hilt of his sword. Crue stayed where he was until the last second, flipping the cloak over Adam, causing him to run into the container at near full speed.

"Animal instincts. We can't help them." Crue said, throwing the cloak over Adam as he jumped back. The fabric was quickly shredded, leaving a panting Adam instead of it.

"For example." Crue said, closing the distance between him and Adam as he rose Setanta. "It's not in a wolf's instincts to take prisoners."

 _Wolf._ The word echoed in Adams head, as he finally connected the sensation of having his entire body fear the person before him. "You're The Wolf!" Adam exclaimed, slashing at Crue.

"Really?!" Crue said, in an annoyed tone, blocking the attack. "You're the one that's all about equality, and here you are profiling me just because I'm a Wolf Faunus." Crue slashed back, Adam leaning to the side to avoid it.

"Ya know what I call that?" Crue asked rhetorically, as he turned Setanta back into a hurl. " _Bull_ shit." The term caused Adam to growl as he swung his sword. The two weapons connected, blue and red clashing.

There was a click, as Adam pointed his sheath at Crue's stomach. The male's eyes widened, as he was blasted back. He skidded to a stop on the ground, breathing heavily. Taurus casually walked over to him, sheathing his sword and stepping on Crue's chest.

"You know, I'm somewhat glad I met you." He told him cockily. "Now I _know_ that Blake is at Beacon. And I will, bring her back to me."

Images of what that promise entailed flashed in Crue's mind, and a deep, guttural growl emanated from his throat. His eyes turned dark gold once more, and with a roar he pushed up, sending the White Fang leader onto one foot.

Crue roared, as he raised his hand, and raked it across Adam's chest. Adam let out a cry of pain, as he jumped back from Crue, bringing a hand to where he was attacked. He looked down to see blood.

His eyes widened as he heard another growl. He looked back to Crue, seeing him crouched on all fours, his weapon completely forgotten. "How-" Adam did not get to finish, as Crue pounced towards him with speed the terrorist couldn't follow.

He brought up his katana in time, hearing a shrill screech as it blocked Crue's attack. Adam kicked out, feeling it connect with his opponent. He finally managed to get a good look at Crue, seeing him kick up dirt as he connected with the ground.

Adam, despite what his underlings thought of him, was not a hot headed muscle brain, he knew when a retreat was the best option. And seeing as said underlings were currently being beaten senseless by two huntresses, it was definitely the best option.

"I'm ordering a retreat." Adam said into his earpiece.

"For once, I agree with you sir." Came the voice of his Lieutenant.

"For once?"

The Lieutenant wisely decided not to respond. "I'll get the Bullheads ready." Adam nodded, sprinting to the landing zone. His first message was heard by all of the White Fang members, those still conscious that is.

"Fall back!" The terrorists began shouting, leaving Velvet and Coco halting their fire.

"What's going on?" Velvet wondered, seeing several Bullheads now descending on the location. The exhaust from the Bullheads blew both girls hair back, and sent Coco's beret flying.

"They're retreating?" Coco questioned. "But, why?"

As the Bullheads rose, they got the answer to their question. Crue ran atop the roof of one of the dock buildings. What was strange was that he was running on all fours. At the end of the roof, he leaped up, and landed on the windshield of a Bullhead.

The pilot inside screamed, staring into Crue's golden eyes. The Wolf Faunus reared a fist back, and punched through the glass, gripping the control wheel, and jerking it to the side. The vehicle followed suit, roughly turning on its side, spilling out all of the White Fang members inside.

They landed in a neat pile of limbs, right in front of Coco and Velvet. "All it needs is a bow on top." Coco elbowed Velvet.

"AAAH-OW!" The pilot of the Bullhead fell onto the pile with a groan.

"Hey." Coco called, causing the pilot to look up. "What kind of Faunus are you?"

"Boa. Why?" She groaned out.

"Eh. Close enough." Coco chuckled, folding her gun back into a handbag. "And you didn't even have to use your weapon."

Velvet nodded in agreement, before looking around. "Where's Crue?"

On cue, a Bullhead rushed overhead, attempting to fly after the other one. Key word there, _attempt._ "I DON'T KNOW HOW TO FLY THIS THING!" Crue exclaimed, the fear of crashing bringing him out of his hunt after Adam.

"I'D REALLY LOVE TO SOME DEUS EX MACHINA ABOUT NOW!" Crue yelled, turning sharply to avoid a crane. His scroll began to ring and with great difficulty he answered it.

"CRUE! What are you doing!?" Came Coco's voice.

"HAVEN'T A FUCKING CLUE!" He answered, looking at the many buttons, knobs and dials before him. As he was busy trying not to crash, the other Bullhead managed to get away, the one that held Adam Taurus.

"Think I'll survive a crash!?" Crue asked, turning it and aiming for the ocean. There was some fumbling over the phone, and a different voice came through.

"Crue! Please don't crash!" Velvet pleaded.

"Don't worry! I won't die!" Crue told her, as he grabbed his scroll and rushed for the open door as the vehicle began to dip.

"How do you know that?!"

" **Because I don't feel like it.** " Crue ended the call, and tapped himself four times with his index and middle finger. "Father, Son, Holy Spirit, GIVE ME SOME FUCKING LUCK!" He jumped from the Bullhead, landing with a roll onto the sand.

"That went surprisingly well." He thought aloud, standing with a groan as the Bullhead hit the ocean, throwing up a large amount of water. Crue let out a low whistle as the tailfin sank beneath the surface.

"I thought there'd be an ex-" _**KABOOM**_ "OK YEAH THERE IT IS!" Crue yelled, running back towards the shipyard as debris was flung into the air. "AAH!" Crue screamed, jumping to the side to avoid flaming metal.

"Crue!" The Faunus in question looked over, seeing Coco and Velvet calling out to him. He waved, and walked over, before a heap of metal that held the pilots door crashed down atop him.

Velvet gasped, both hands coming to rest over her mouth, as tears stung at the corner of her eyes. Coco's mouth fell open in disbelief. "He- He-." She tried. "I don't-"

"FUCKING HELL!" The door was flung open, and Crue stood up, breathing heavily. "YA AIN'T GOT ME YET BITCH!" He laughed, pointing to the sky. "Bloody hell." He panted, bending over and resting his hands on his knees.

He looked up, seeing Velvet and Coco staring at him with wide eyes. He looked down once more, seeing the surrounding debris. He met Velvet's eyes, hers looking quite red. "Told you I wouldn't die."

Velvet's expression morphed into a sad frown, as she marched over and began whacking his arm, much harder than she did earlier. "You! Big! Dumb! Idiot!" She exclaimed, punctuating each word with another slap.

"I-OW-didn't-OW-I said I wouldn't-OW!" He finally stepped back, tripping over the debris and falling onto his back. "Ow…" He droned out, Velvet gasping lightly.

"Oh! Crue! I didn't mean to!" She apologised.

"So you meant the other stuff? Haha-ow." He wheezed, trying to stand. Velvet reached down, helping the other Faunus to stand.

Coco walked over while Velvet was helping Crue stand. Once the man was on two, albeit wobbly, feet, he met Coco's eyes. "Are you gonna hit me too?" He asked.

"Maybe." She shrugged, holding out a hand. Crue instinctively winced, but opened an eye to see what she was holding. "You dropped these."

He took his sunglasses back from the fashionista, checking the reflection. His eyes were a steely blue. "Huh." He murmured, placing the shades back on his face. "I feel like my eyes were… never mind."

The three hunters looked at each other. "Don't suppose we got our orders did we?" Crue asked with a smirk.

"No. Surprisingly enough we weren't able to order our drinks and come here to save your sorry ass at the same time." Coco punched Crue's shoulder, causing him to hiss.

"Speaking of which." Velvet spoke, the others looking to her. "What was all that about? In the café, with the thieves."

"Yeah. They acted like they knew you or something." Coco questioned, lowering her glasses and staring at Crue.

"Uh. Well…" He caught sight of something. "Hey! Look! Literally anything else!" The two girls followed his finger, seeing a squad of police cars moving towards them.

"Why is it they always show up _after_ all the terrorists are gone?" Coco complained. Crue shrugged, then grabbed his shoulder in pain.

"Why did you hit the same one?" He grumbled.

The police arrived, taking details from the trio. "How did you get here?" An officer asked Crue. In response, Crue pointed to the locker that was now sticking out of the ground. "Fair enough." He wrote down a few more things, before leaving them to their own devices.

"So, think we'll get a piece in the yearbook?" Crue joked, sitting atop a crate.

"Doubt it." Coco sighed. "If anything, we'll be getting a detention."

"For stopping terrorists?" Crue questioned.

"Professor Goodwitch."

"Good point."

"Ahem." The trio turned, seeing an officer standing before them. "Crue, Velvet, and Moco?"

"Coco." The leader corrected. The officer nodded an apology, and then gave a whistle with his two fingers.

A moment later, two other policemen appeared, one carry three drinks in a tray, and the other a set of bags. "You left these at Stardust."

Crue's eye twitched, but resisted the urge to hit something. "Go on the guards." He thanked, taking the drinks as the other two took the bags.

They set up the drinks on a large crate, sorted out the bags amongst each other and dragged a smaller crate each. "Feels like a picnic." Crue commented, sipping from his hot chocolate.

Coco and Velvet looked around at their picnic area. Consisting of police, broken debris, unconscious and cuffed White Fang. "Some picnic spot." Coco commented.

"Eh, I've been to worse." Crue shrugged.

"Really? Where?" Velvet asked.

"Finglas."

"What the Hell is Finglas?" The leader of CFVY asked.

Crue stopped drinking, feigning confusion. "Ya know. I'm not really sure. Probably a shh-tinky place." He sighed, rubbing his head.

Coco looked to Velvet in confusion. "He's trying to curse less." The Rabbit Faunus told her. Coco made an 'oh' of understand, and went back to drinking her coffee.

After around half an hour, a member of Beacon staff approached the three. Tapping her foot impatiently, she waited for one of them to speak. "Hey Ms. Goodwitch." Crue greeted casually, gesturing his cup near her. "Hot chocolate?"

A vein grew on the deputy's forehead. "Crue. What are you three doing here?"

"Stopping an evil terrorist organisation from disrupting what is meant to be a peaceful fight between the nations of this world in a way to show that we are grateful for what we have." Crue said as he sipped his drink, a pinky finger raised.

The blank faces he drew from that speech was priceless. "I had a while to think about it."

Glynda sighed, rubbing her temple. "The police told me they confiscated several containers of Dust. You think they were going to be used against the Vytal festival?"

"I know so. Some grunt literally said they were going to set charges on Amity." Crue told the professor. Velvet and Coco glanced at each other in confusion.

"You didn't say that to the police." Coco accused.

Crue turned to her with a dead face. "Would _you_ have said there was going to be attempted terrorism at a crowded event to just a police officer, instead of a huntress?"

"Yes."

"Oh. Well, fu-eck me then." Crue murmured.

"Where would they set charges?" Velvet wondered.

"Probably that giant ass Dust crystal." Crue hypothesised. When the others looked at him oddly, he continued. "What? It's a structural weak point."

"He's right." Goodwitch nodded. "I'll have James increase security."

"First name basis with the General, are we Ms. Goodwitch?" Crue teased. Glynda glared at him, and with a wave of her crop, the box beneath him collapsed.

"Deserved that." Crue wheezed out. "Least my hot chocolates ok." The Faunus said happily, taking another long sip.

"Why is he drinking hot chocolate in the middle of August?" Glynda asked the two seniors. They both shrugged.

"There's never a bad time for hot chocolate." Velvet said with a smile.

"Preach." Crue's empty hand pointed at her over the box they were using as a table.

Goodwitch sighed, checking her scroll. "Very well. Let's get you back to Beacon."

…

"I suddenly have a fear of Bullheads." Crue's nails dug into the cushioned seat below him, as his heart thumped in his chest. Goodwitch regarded him with a curious stare, then Coco explained what happened.

"You flew a Bullhead?" She said in surprise.

"Crashed one. I don't know how to fly." Crue told the professor. "And I really don't want to fly anymore."

He shrunk slight, head going between his shoulder blades. Velvet looked upon him with pity, and gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

"It's alright Crue. You're not going to crash." She whispered softly. Hearing the words eased the man's tension, but still left his throat dry.

Velvet continuously reassured her fellow Faunus, as Coco and Goodwitch glanced at each other, the leader wearing a smirk. "You see it too?" She mouthed.

Glynda nodded, storing that piece of information away for the teachers betting pool.

When they touched down at Beacon, Crue ran out, gripping onto a nearby post. "Ok. Now I know how Jaune feels. At least I didn't throw up."

"At least you didn't what?" Coco asked, stepping out of the vehicle after Velvet.

"Throw up. Like Jaune. First time he flew up to Beacon. Bleehck. Right over Yang's shoes." The fashionista shuddered, imaging if she were in the same situation. Well, if she were, Jaune probably would not have made it to Beacon.

"I'm going to go back to the dorm, and try out this new sleeping bag." Crue told them. "See yas." He waved, before stopping hearing someone jogging after him.

He turned, getting a face full of bunny ears as Velvet hugged him. " _WHAAAAAAAAAAAA"_ And it went on. Crue, acting on instinct, returned the hug.

"Don't do anything reckless like crashing a Bullhead again. Please." The Rabbit Faunus begged. Crue looked up to get Coco's opinion on this. She made a gesture of cracking her knuckles.

"I won't." Crue promised. Velvet stepped back, looking up at him. "Promise." Velvet sighed in relief, nodding and turning back to Coco. Unseen by Crue, the moment she turned away a huge blush grew on her cheeks.

"I can't believe I just did that." Velvet hissed to Coco.

" _I can't believe you made her do that."_ Crue glared to the sky, believing the Author to be behind Velvet's actions. " _It's only been three days dude. Too soon for a relationship."_

Crue walked back to the dorm, fully intent on sleeping in his brand new sleeping bag. "CRUE!" The Universe had other plans however.

"NOT THE SHOULDER!" Crue cried out, as he was tackled by three of the members of RWBY. "Ow…" He whined out.

"We heard about what happened at the shipyard!" Yang exclaimed. Crue's ears flattened against his head, as he tried to speak.

"Can I stand first?" Crue requested.

"But we have questions." Ruby moaned.

"About who you fought." Blake said quietly.

"I will answer them once I am up." Crue responded. The three got off of him, allowing him to stand. He grabbed his bag and placed it near his chest of drawers. He noticed Weiss sitting on her bed, and momentarily wondered why she didn't glomp him.

"Ok." Crue turned round, looking at three sets of expectant eyes.

"What do you want to know?"

* * *

 _Got this one out on time. Sweet. So, a little less sub plot, and more questions as to what the hell is going on with Crue. Surely this has nothing to do with the fact Salem now knows of his existence… Nah._

 _A little bit of my own storyline now I guess? There's quite a while until the Vytal Festival, what could Crue get up to during that time? Well, whatever it is, it will be full of cynicism, cursing and pain. Most of said pain being directed at Crue._

 _Hope you enjoyed this chapter, if you have any questions, ask them. If you have any reviews, leave them. And as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_

 _[Side note]_

 _[Coming up with chapter names is hard]_


	18. A Friendly Spar

"So basically," Ruby began, once Crue finished explaining what happened, leaving out certain details. "You did what we did at the end of the first semester."

"Yeah. Something like that." Crue nodded. Three of the members of team RWBY turned to each other and began talking about what they just heard. The other member looked Crue right in the eye, or attempted to.

Crue's glasses reflected amber as Blake spoke. "Who did you fight?" The others fell silent as they looked at the two Faunus.

"You don't want the answer to that." Crue told her. Blake glared at him.

"Why not?!" She demanded.

"Because if I tell you it'll be the start of this semester all over again, where you're barely getting enough sleep to function!" Crue argued.

"Tell me!" Blake pleaded. Hearing her voice crack, Yang scooted over, throwing her arms around Blake and bringing her close.

The sight caused Crue to feel guilt well up inside him. "If I tell you," He started, causing Blake to look up in hope. "You have to promise not to go after them." Blake nodded rapidly, and Crue stuck out his hand, pinky finger extended.

Blake looked up at him in confusion. "These are serious." The Cat Faunus gave him a deadpan look, but made the promise.

Crue sighed, taking off his glasses and meeting Blake's eyes. "It was Adam."

He could see Blake's world falling apart, as her eyes widened and her mouth morphed into an expression of horror. "No…" She whispered, staring at the ground.

"I don't get it." Weiss spoke. "Who's Adam?"

Blake made to answer, but Crue cut across. "Someone who ran away with his metaphorical tail between his legs."

Blake turned to look at Crue in surprise. "What? He ran? He'd never run."

"He retreated." Crue told her. "Because of me." The Faunus raised a hand and looked at his palm. "I don't really remember much very clearly, but after I got shotgunned he stepped on me and said," He looked at Blake. "Something."

"Whatever it was, it made me really, really angry." He growled out, his hand turning into a fist.

"Crue, we've seen you angry. You're not that bad." Ruby said quietly.

"That's not me angry, that's me annoyed." Crue responded. "This, this was me angry."

"What happened?" Blake asked quietly.

"I may have," Crue coughed lightly. "Taken my heritage a bit too seriously." His ears twitched at his words.

"You bit him?" Yang laughed out.

"No!" Crue responded indignantly. "I scratched him." He looked at the tips of his nails. "And somehow, it went through his Aura."

Everyone fell silent at that. "Y-You scratched through his Aura?" Ruby asked. Crue nodded. "Are you sure you didn't, break it before?"

"I'm sure." Crue told them. "I don't know how I did it. But he bled. I think that's why he retreated."

"Well," Weiss spoke, seeing as no one else could find the words. "Looks like I'll have to have a word with Velvet."

Crue blinked and looked at the heiress. "If you recall, I requested that she kept you out of any predicaments." The Wolf Faunus blanked, but nodded. "And it would appear she didn't keep that request."

Crue's hand smacked his face as he dragged it down. "Please don't." He requested. She shook his head, before looking at the group before them. "What were you guys doing all day anyway?" The silence that followed the question caused him to raise an eyebrow.

"What did you do?" He repeated.

"Don't be mad…" Ruby began softly.

"Oh my God, what did you do?" Crue repeated more urgently.

"We were with Polly." Yang bit the bullet, wincing as she finished the sentence. She opened an eye to see Crue looking, relaxed.

"Oh. Ok, that's fine then." He shrugged. The others all glanced at each other.

"You're taking this very well." Weiss said, meeting Crue's eyes.

"You were just hanging out with her right? Did you like, what, try and help her get over me or something?" The Faunus theorised.

"Yeah." Ruby nodded. "We brought movies and marshmallows and ice cream."

Crue chuckled lightly. "What kind of ice cream?"

"Uh, Neapolitan." Blake answered. "Why?"

"No reason." Crue murmured, shaking his head. "Can I go to sleep now? I got a sleeping bag and I want to try it out."

The girls nodded, all of them going to their drawers and grabbing their sleeping gear. Crue did the same, grabbing the sleeping bag from the shopping bag. With a flourish, he flattened it out, and zipped it open.

He wiggled into it, zipping it up and feeling warmth surround his body. "I feel like a caterpillar." Crue muttered, moving like said animal to get under Weiss' bed.

"Do you still need to be under there?" Weiss asked from above Crue.

"Well, if I'm under here and I wake up, I see nothing. If I'm outside, I might see some of you getting changed." The Faunus reasoned.

"Not like you haven't already." Yang called from atop her bunk. Crue shook his head, then smiled when he heard the 'thump' of a pillow hitting the blonde.

"Night." Crue called, receiving variations in return as they all began to drift off. " _No symbolism dreams. Just let me sleep dude."_ Crue requested of the Author, as his eyelids fell shut.

…

"What do you mean you failed?" Cinder questioned Adam Taurus over her scroll, staring at the mans mask.

"That huntsman, Cullen, you said his name was?" The Bull Faunus recollected. Cinder nodded in confirmation. "He had reinforcements. That and…" Adam trailed off, trying to put what he experienced into words. "He's more than man, he's more than Faunus. I don't know what he is, but it's not natural."

"You lost to a mere child?" Cinder seethed.

"There is nothing mere about that child!" Adam exclaimed, opening his trench coat and angling his scroll. "Look at what he did to me!"

Amber eyes widened a fraction as she looked at the White Fang leader's chest. Four diagonal scars beginning at his left shoulder and ending at the curve of his torso. "He did this. With his nails, through my Aura."

"How on Remnant?" Cinder breathed. The scroll changed back to Adam's mask as he continued.

"I don't know what you have against this, beast. But he is not someone to take lightly." Cinder's eyebrow arched in questioning. "And yes, I say that knowing full well how you brought me into this project."

Cinder frowned, recalling the day in question. If Adam believed that Crue could possibly beat her, while she had half of the powers of the Fall maiden. "Do you have anything else to report?"

Adam fell silent for a moment, apparently thinking. "His eyes." He said. "They kept, changing." Cinder listened carefully. "When he first knocked me back, they were gold. But, then blue. And then when I had him on the ground, they turned back to gold and he attacked me."

"Thank you Adam. I'm sure this will prove most, enlightening." Cinder nodded, ending the call. She tossed the scroll onto her bed, the room void of company. She sat down, intertwining her fingers, and plotting.

"I have never seen his eyes." She realised. Through every interaction she had with the Faunus, never had he been without his glasses. And according to Adam, he apparently had two different eye colours.

But the first time she had heard of the Faunus was through Emerald and Mercury, and they said he had blue eyes, like steel. Iron sights, she supposed. With a groan, her face fell into her open palms.

When she returned from the failed White Fang operation with Mercury, she found her room filled with the members of team RWBY. The busty blonde one made a rather intricate pun involving Mercury, dreams and cold shoulders.

Needless to say, it had an unfortunate effect on her. She decided should she have to eliminate that team, the blondes vocal cords would be the first to go. She shook her head, debating informing Salem about this.

With a sigh, she shook her head. Her Goddess did not need to know every little detail involving Crue. That, and also it was a petty revenge, as she had recently discovered that she did _not_ in fact have to rhyme to contact someone with her mirror.

What was more worrying was the fact Crue was there. How did he know what was going on. He had obviously come from Beacon, if the fact he rode in on a locker showed anything. Did he have an inside informant in the White Fang?

The fact he was Faunus certainly aided that idea. Once more, going back to her first time hearing about him, he saved a White Fang runaway from Emerald and Mercury. It could have been a coincidence, but Cinder didn't believe in coincidences.

Only destiny.

Perhaps it was her destiny to end him. She would very much like that, the chance to watch the light fade from his eyes, no matter what colour they were. That being said, she still needed the opportunity to see them.

Perhaps destroying the glasses would aid her. In fact, if she recalled correctly from what Adam had said, when he had fought without his glasses, he had only been able to block, and Taurus could easily counter him.

It was only once he knocked him onto the ground and his eyes turned gold that he managed to fight back. Curious. The more she learned about this Faunus, the more questions that cropped up. Now that she thought about it, she had no background for him whatsoever.

It was almost as if he had simply, appeared. Just popped into being in this world. She needed information on him. And now.

…

Crue let out a yawn as he opened his eyes, seeing the bottom of Weiss' bed above him. He listened carefully, trying to tell who was asleep and who was awake. A soft pattering could be heard, and Crue deduced that there was someone in the shower.

" _Weiss."_ He realised. " _She always takes the earliest showers."_ He stretched, but found himself unable to move. Before panic could set in, he remembered that he was in the sleeping bag. With a sigh, he reached around, zipping it down from the inside.

He rolled out from under the bed, pushing his arms against the ground and standing. With a quick glance, he could see the others were all in bed. He stretched fully, several of his joints cracking. He decided to leave early, having had a shower the day before.

" _Probably not very hygienic but."_ He shrugged, getting dressed into some of the clothes he bought yesterday. A pair of tracksuit bottoms and a pure navy shirt. " _There are showers at the gym. Maybe I'll go there."_

Crue exited the room, grabbing his headphones and leaving a small note for the others as to where he was going. The door closed with a soft click, and Crue let out a small sigh. He turned, walking down the hall, listening to the silence of the early morning.

"First time I've left my claws at the dorm." Crue murmured, feeling an odd lightness in his arms, the device not weighing him down usually. "I could work on my boxing." He hummed in thought.

"Although, Yang might be upset I didn't ask her to spar with me." He contemplated. A short while later, he found himself at the entrance to the gymnasium. A quick moment of silence, and he could tell there was only one person in there.

" _Wonder who it is."_ Crue mused, walking through the empty room, following the sounds of what sounded like someone punching a sack of meat. " _Or punching bag."_

Crue turned a corner, saw who it was, and promptly spun on his heel. Unfortunately, the action caused a squeak due to his shoes, alerting the other person to his presence.

"Cullen!" " _Faahk."_ Crue sighed mentally, turning to face Cinder Fall as she made her way over to him, having finished hitting the training dummy.

"I have a first name you know, Autumn." Crue responded with a glare.

"It's Fall." Cinder corrected.

"Like I care." Crue rebutted. Cinder's amber eyes glared at him, as she crossed her arms over her attire. Crue noted that she was wearing grey pants and boots, and a sleeveless beige leather jacket, with several bandages wrapped around her waist and chest.

"Practicing for the tournament?" Crue hummed. "You'll probably need it."

Cinder seethed, she hated the fact this man could manage to get under her skin like this. "Is that not why you are here? To practice."

"Yeah, but not for the tournament." Crue shrugged, stepping past Cinder. "Not like I need it. I stopped a whole White Fang operation yesterday, _anyone_ else will be childs-play." It went unsaid, but Cinder could tell he included her in that statement.

A statement Cinder would not stand for. "Well, if _anyone_ would be childs-play, spar with me." She dared. If what she believed was true, that Crue knew everything about her, about Salem, and about her Maiden powers, there was no way he would- "Sure."

"What?" Cinder blinked.

"You asked to spar. I agreed. That's how these things tend to work." And there was that snarky tone, the same one that made her want to pound him into the dust. Wait. She could do that now.

A rare smile made its way onto Cinder's face, as she nodded. "Very well. Let us spar." She made her way over to the training mat, and Crue took his point at the other end.

"Rules?" Crue questioned. " _There is probably some ulterior motive here, but I really don't give a shit. I just want to deck her."_

"Surrender or unconsciousness. That will signal defeat." Crue nodded, raising his fists up. Cinder did the same, peering at the Faunus through the gap in her fists.

There was no countdown for this fight, but they both began to slowly circle each other. At the same moment, they rushed each other. Their fists met, and Crue cursed the fact that he hadn't made a rule about semblances.

He brought his hand back, blowing on it to cool it off. He shook it lightly, frowning at Cinder as she wore a smirk. "Something the matter, Crue?"

"Nothing at all, Autumn." Cinder's smirk disappeared, and Crue took the opportunity to jab at her. It hit her wrist, but the action still had an effect. Cinder reared back, before spinning, bringing her leg up high.

Crue ducked under the swing, making his hand flat and slamming it into the half-Maiden's abdomen. Cinder coughed roughly, before bringing her hands together and slamming them down onto Crue's head, specifically on his extra ear.

Crue hissed, as the action knocked his glasses off and sent pain shooting through his skull. He pulled back, glaring at the woman before him. Cinder's eyes widened, seeing Wrath in his dark gold eyes. "That wasn't exactly by the book."

"Oh, I didn't realise you had problems fighting dirty." Cinder called, as if she was talking to a small child. The deep chuckle that escaped Crue's throat sent her back a pace.

"Oh please. You call that dirty?" He insulted, his eyes meeting hers. "That wasn't shit. But, it did let me know I can fight the same."

Cinder scoffed. "You? Fight dirt-" In a flash, Crue was in front of her, arm pulled back. Cinder's eyes widened, as she brought her arms up in a cross to protect her face. Crue aimed lower.

Crue punched Cinder's throat, the girl coughing roughly. She hunched over, one of her hands instantly went to the area. Thanks to Aura, it did no lasting damage, but the shock factor was enough to distract her. That was what Crue was going for.

An elbow to the nose, and Cinder stumbled back. Before she could retreat much further, Crue grabbed her by the back of her head, and brought it down, connecting his knee with her face. Cinder gasped, straightening herself up, only to receive a haymaker to her face.

That punch sent her sprawling across the mat, breathing heavily. "Surrender?" Crue called.

"Where? How?" The raven haired woman coughed out, rolling on her side and standing, meeting Crue's eyes. To her surprise, they were no longer gold. They were now a steely blue colour, and looked oddly familiar…

"I grew up in a worse place than you." Crue informed her, bringing his fists up once more. Cinder opened her mouth to argue, but Crue continued. "I don't care. You can say you grew up in the wilderness with Grimm at every corner, and I'll stand by my point."

"Where did you grow up then?" Cinder questioned, bringing her hands up.

"The streets. Of a little place called," Crue dashed forward, eyes flashing gold as he stared Cinder down.

" **Dublin.** "

…

"Has anyone seen Crue?" Ruby asked, peeking under Weiss' bed. The other's had all woken up, Weiss sitting at her desk reading something on her scroll.

"He went to the gym." She informed her.

"How'd you know?" Yang asked, sitting on Blake's bed, drying her hair.

Weiss held up a small piece of paper between two fingers. Ruby walked over and took it, reading it aloud. "Gone to gym. Don't know what I'll be doing. Will probably return in pain."

The others all nodded, believing that last line all too easily. "Maybe he'll surprise us, and not come back in bruises." Blake theorised, sitting next to Yang, reading a book. That was definitely not smut, no matter what Yang implied.

"My money's on that not happening." The blonde murmured.

A small 'click' drew their attention to the door, as it swung open. Everyone gasped, as Crue walked in. His hair was singed, his glasses were crooked, and his arms contained several bruises. "Crue?" Ruby asked softly.

The Faunus opened his mouth, and a small amount of smoke escaped it. "I won." He said hoarsely, falling face first onto the ground. There was an instant clamour, as the four of them hoisted Crue up.

"You won what?" Yang asked. "The award for most pain received at the gym?"

"A spar." Crue breathed out, managing to stand under his own power.

"A spar ended up like this?" Weiss said, aghast. "What about the rules?"

"The only rules were that the match ends after surrender or unconsciousness. And guess who didn't get knocked the Hell out." He jabbed a thumb at himself. "This guy."

"Who was your spar with?" Yang said, slightly disappointed.

"I'll give you a hint." He whispered, throwing an arm around the blonde's shoulders. He pointed to his smouldering hair. "It's a pun."

"Cinder?" Yang caught on immediately. Crue nodded, patting her on the back and making his way over to the dorm shower.

"Damn straight. I kicked her fiery butt. And that is not even a nice butt. It's a subpar butt. I have seen many better butts." Crue's train of thought became rather, derailed. But that might be due to the blunt force trauma.

The Faunus entered the bathroom, leaving the four girls in silence. "Wow, he must really be out of it." Ruby murmured.

"Yeah. He didn't even notice I was naked." Yang agreed. At that point, every girl turned to look at the brawler, then recoiled in shock that her words were true. Several towels were flung at her, covering her extremities.

"I wonder how Cinder is taking the loss." Weiss hummed, as the others all thought the same.

…

"I'M GOING TO KILL HIM!" Cinder exclaimed, pacing around her dorm room so much that she was beginning to create a groove in the floor. Emerald and Mercury watched her pace, pressed up against the walls of the room, as far away from Cinder as possible.

Neo luckily teleported out the moment Cinder entered, sensing an impending shit show. "It's really not that noticeable." Emerald tried. Her boss turned to glare at her, and if not for the fact she could incinerate Emerald on the spot, the red eyed girl would have laughed.

There were circles around Cinder's eyes, and a rather pompous looking moustache drawn on in black marker. To add insult to injury, just below her belly button was an arrow pointing down, and the words " _Drier than a desert in Vacuo"_

"If it's not permanent, it should wash off in the shower." Mercury informed Cinder. Growling, Cinder turned on her heel and marched into the bathroom. Once the door was closed, the two lackeys let out sighs of relief.

"It's a good thing she didn't see what was on her back." Mercury muttered. "I hate that guy's guts, but God damn is he funny."

"I think he's wrong." Emerald frowned. Mercury laughed, falling back onto one of the beds.

"Of course you would. What was it he wrote again? Oh yeah, _Subpar Ass_." He cackled, kicking his feet up onto the bed.

"It is not subpar! It's amazing!" Emerald exclaimed, a blush on her face.

"I don't blame him honestly, after seeing an ass like Neo's, there's just no comparing." Mercury chuckled, before receiving a pillow to the face, curtesy of Emerald.

As the two argued, Cinder stayed in the shower, scrubbing herself as hard as she possibly could in order to get rid of the marker. While she did, she thought about what Crue had said during their spar.

" _Dublin."_ The name was foreign to her, she couldn't even think of a place with a name similar to it. " _You wouldn't last a day."_ That part angered her. She survived well enough on her own, what's so bad there that could cause her to fail.

Even if she lost against him in the spar, that proved nothing. It did serve to anger her though. The more she thought about it, the angrier she got, before realising that her temperature had increased so much that the water was evaporating the moment it hit her skin.

She willed herself to calm down, allowing the water to wash over her, the black marker running down her body in streams. "Damn him." She hissed, as she moved her hands over her body, washing away the suds.

Never before had anyone stood so strongly against her, unable to be swayed or cast aside. He was stubborn as he was strong. Every piece of information she had on him swirled in her mind, from what she learned in the spar, to the first thing Neo told her.

"Damn his eyes." His dark gold eyes, and his steely blue ones. Both images were flashing in Cinder's mind. The way they looked at her just before he aimed for her throat. Like a wolf, going in for the kill.

"Damn his, mhm, muscles." She whispered out, remembering the feeling of his arm around her neck as he attempted to choke her out. The tightness of his hands as he gripped her arms, before throwing her over him.

"Damn him, ahh, and his co-" Cinder's eyes widened, as she brought her hand up from where it had been caressing, and looked at the sticky substance in horror. "Oh no."

…

"Uh oh." Crue muttered, feeling a shiver run up his spine. Despite the warm temperature of team RWBY's dorm, he felt as though he had been submerged in a bucket of ice.

"What's wrong Crue?" Ruby asked, looking up from her weapons magazine.

"I don't know why, but I feel like I'm in danger. Like, more so than usual." Crue frowned.

"What did you do?" Blake asked, looking up from her book with a raised eyebrow.

"Drew on Cinder after I knocked her out." He shrugged. "But, it wasn't permanent."

"You drew on her?" Yang asked, hanging upside down from her bunk. Crue nodded in confirmation. "What you draw?"

"Monocles and a moustache." Crue shrugged. "Best I could think of in the short time."

"Why?" Weiss asked. "Would you draw on someone?"

"Because they were unconscious, the opportunity presented itself, and she is a total _soith_." Crue drawled.

"A what?" Weiss asked. Crue opened his mouth to respond, but shut it immediately.

"Ya know, I'm not really sure now that I think about it." He shrugged, but the others could tell he was lying.

"You spoke a different language again." Ruby pointed out. "What language is it?"

"Don't know." Crue frowned. "I've been speaking it a lot lately. Should probably find out." " _That was a little nod at you, fuckface."_ His eyes went skyward, knowing who he was directing that to.

"We should probably go get breakfast." Ruby stretched, standing up. Crue grabbed his pocket watch, having changed into his regular outfit after the last one got noticeably burned. It was 11am, so a bit late for breakfast.

"Would it still be serving?" Crue asked.

"Beacon breakfast serves till one." Weiss said in an almost robotic tone. "I remember."

"Well then, let's get some grub." Yang said, jumping from her bed onto the floor. The others all nodded, setting down what they were doing.

Crue returned his pocket watch to its pocket on his waistcoat. He pat his jean pockets, before halting. "Anyone seen me scroll?" He asked, checking under the bed.

"What?" Weiss asked, a twitch in her eye.

"Me scroll." Crue repeated.

"Are you sure you don't mean, 'my' scroll?" Weiss questioned. Crue stood, looking at the heiress in confusion.

"Your scroll is right there." He said, pointing to her desk. "Don't know what you're on about." Crue walked into the bathroom, checking for the device.

"His accent is weird." Ruby hummed, walking out of the dorm. Weiss followed, the beginnings of a grammar lecture spewing from her mouth.

Crue exited the bathroom a short while later, scroll in hand. "Got it." He said, following after Blake and Yang. He followed the two girls, making sure to keep out of Weiss' line of sight to be spared from a talk on proper grammar.

The group made their way to the cafeteria, the last stragglers of the breakfast still hanging about. Luckily, that group of stragglers included team JNPR. "HEY YOU GUYS!" Nora called out, much louder than necessary.

" _I miss the Goonies."_ Crue hummed, as he waved to the Valkyrie. A short moment later, and the five of them were sat across from the sister team. "So, what's up?" Jaune asked.

"Weiss doesn't like Crue's accent." Ruby spoke, causing the platinum haired girl to cease her lecture immediately. Crue laughed quietly.

"Yeah, your accent is kinda strange." Jaune agreed. "I can't copy it, no matter how hard I try."

"You want to copy my accent?" Crue chuckled, taking out his scroll and writing something in the notes section. "Say this loud, and say it kinda fast." He handed to scroll to Jaune, who looked at it in confusion.

"Whale Oil Beef Hooked." He spoke. His words caused Yang to choke on her drink as she began to laugh, and for Pyrrha to grow a blush. "I don't get it." The others all had various stages of confusion or humour.

"Yeah, and you won't for a while." Crue nodded, taking his scroll back. "If you want to mimic me, it's either that, or drink two litres of whiskey. I doubt you can do that latter."

"And you can?" Blake asked, looking at the Faunus with incredulity. Crue did not respond. "Oh my God you can."

"Damn straight." Crue nodded. As the conversation continued, Crue experienced that same sensation of being in mortal danger that he did earlier. Glancing round, he noticed a head of raven hair enter the room, devoid of any markings.

Crue pulled at his collar lightly, turning back and trying to focus on the situation. However, as he did he could feel amber eyes boring into the back of his head. "Jaune." Crue whispered. The blonde in question raised an eyebrow at his Faunus.

"Is there some girl from Haven staring at me? Look carefully." Jaune nodded, casually leaning closer to Pyrrha. The girl misinterpreted the action, as a heavy blush fell across her face. Jaune's face paled as he moved back.

"Oh yeah. Looks about ready to kill you." He nodded. Crue groaned, head hitting the table.

"Should not have drawn on her." He regretted drawing that monocle and moustache, but not the writing. "Wanna start a food fight so I can get out of here unnoticed?"

"I'm afraid Professor Goodwitch wouldn't be as tolerant to another one, Crue." Pyrrha told the Faunus, subtly sidling next to Jaune.

"Maybe if I run she won't be able to catch me." Crue hummed, poking at his food.

"You could use your Semblance." Blake murmured from next to him.

"Maybe." Crue nodded. "I just wish I knew why she was trying to drill a hole into my head with her eyes."

…

"Have you found anything?" Cinder asked Emerald, as she stared at the back of the blonde Faunus.

"Nothing." The blood eyed girl responded. "There is no mention of Crue Cullen, aside from a news article about what happened yesterday."

Cinder seethed, hands balling into fists as the wood below her began smoking. "I think I found something." Mercury said, next to her.

"What is it?" Cinder questioned.

"You said he was from, Dublin, or something, right?" The assassin confirmed. When Cinder nodded, he continued. "Well, there's no such thing as Dublin. _But._ " He added quickly, as Cinder's expression morphed into one of venom. "There is somewhere called Dublith."

"Dublith?" Cinder racked her brains for the location, but wound up with nothing.

"Yep." Mercury began reading off the website he had open on his scroll. "Dublith. Capital city of Hibernia. Name comes from Dubh Linn, meaning black pool."

"Hibernia? I think Professor Oobleck mentioned that." Emerald hummed. When the other two looked at her, she defended herself. "What? I didn't exactly get an education growing up I might as well try to learn."

"Well, what did you learn?" Cinder tested.

"Hibernia is a very special case, because it's one of the first settlements to ever succeed outside of the main continents. It's the island halfway between Mistral and Menagerie. They separated from Mistral during the Great War, because they disagreed with the whole 'no more emotions' thing."

"So there was a separation?" Cinder asked.

"Yeah, and seeing as the whole island is about the size of Vale city, Mistral let them go, after a fight. They had to ration because of the war, and a stopping a whole island settlement really helped that. They didn't think they would last that long, and they were almost right." Emerald explained.

"There was a famine." Mercury said, reading from his scroll. "A really bad one. The population fell by about one third."

"So what happened? How did they survive?" The half-Maiden asked.

"Menagerie aided them. This is after the war. Hibernia was known for being tolerant. As long as you disliked Mistral, you were ok with them." Mercury chuckled. "They ended up sharing a lot of resources. Because Menagerie is basically a desert wasteland, Hibernia provided them with wood."

"Wood?" Cinder rose a brow.

"Hibernia is covered in forest." Emerald told her boss. "It's one of the greenest places you could ever find, in fact the Emerald Forest is named after it. Apparently the King of Vale visited there a lot. Hibernia as a whole was completely neutral during the Great War."

"As a whole?" Cinder repeated.

"The country didn't go to war, but some of its inhabitants joined Vale and Vacuo." Emerald told her.

"Apparently one of the Kings right hand men was Hibernian. It has a small description of him here." Mercury scrolled down. "A true beast on the battlefield, with only a hurley," "What's a hurley?" "It says in brackets that it's a kind of stick used in a game they have."

"Anyway," Mercury continued. "Recruited personally by the King himself, the Hibernian proved himself that day by defeating several enemies, both human and Grimm."

"Does it give a name?" Cinder asked, raising an eyebrow.

"His true name has been lost to time," Mercury read. "But it can be roughly translated as Oaken Wolf."

…

"Achoo!" Crue sniffled, covering his face with his elbow.

"Excuse you." The entire table chorused.

"Thanks." The Faunus rubbed his nose. "I've been sneezing a bit lately, maybe I'm allergic to something."

"You don't know if you're allergic to something?" Jaune asked. Crue rapped his knuckles against his head. "Oh, right. My bad."

"It's cool." Crue shrugged. "I forget myself most times."

"You forget you have amnesia?" Ruby asked from the other end of the table. "Is that a thing?"

"Apparently."

"Huh." Ruby hummed, nibbling on her cookie. "You learn something new everyday."

"Speaking of learning." Weiss spoke up, causing Yang, Ruby and Nora to groan. "How are you doing studying for the tests?"

"Pfft." Crue spat out his drink, turning to look at Weiss in horror. "We have tests?"

"Oh dear lord." The heiress sighed, palming her face. "Yes we have tests. They're in two weeks." Crue's posture fell, as his eyes became dull.

"I'll burn that bridge when I come to it." Crue murmured, head hitting the table.

"I think the phrase is-" "I know what I said." Crue cut across Blake, who looked surprised.

"What does it mean?" The Faunus asked.

"It means I haven't gotten to the problem yet, but when I do I'll probably mess it up." Crue explained. The table fell silent, taking in this information.

It was Jaune, who decided to break the silence.

"I think I just found my life motto."

* * *

 _I have been struck with information, and have also seen the most recent World of Remnant. Also, here's a little thing to make you wonder. What is Crue's name? From the very beginning, he did not approve of the name given to him. So, what is his name?_

 _Also, apparently Cinder has a thing for Crue now? Wow, talk about a Mary Sue, huh. *coughs awkwardly* Crue is probably gonna be pissed off when he finds out about that. Also, Hibernia. How long until Crue finds out about that?_

 _So, any questions you have about the story or about Crue, leave them. Any comments, let me know. Any criticisms, boy you better write them. And as always,_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	19. Knight Night

With a yawn, Weiss Schnee awoke from her slumber, stretching her arms wide and blearily opening her eyes. One of the benefits to being the earliest riser of her team was not having to deal with any unwanted noise when she woke.

That was how it was for the majority of her life at Beacon, so why could she hear a strange scratching noise. Rubbing sleep out of her eyes, the heiress located the source of the noise.

"Crue?" She yawned out, seeing the Faunus hunched over his desk, writing something down. His ears flicked towards the platinum haired girl, but made no response. Weiss swung her feet off of her bed, standing with a groan.

She walked over to the boy's desk, looking at what he was writing. "Oh my…" Weiss breathed, seeing several pages full of diagrams and words. "What are these?" She asked, picking up a particular page that had one large circle in the middle, and several other branching off of it.

"Mind maps." Crue said shortly. "Main circle is the topic, smaller circle are related facts." Weiss nodded in understanding, thinking the idea was genius.

"Can I make copies of this?" She asked, lightly flapping the paper. Crue nodded, going back to writing. Weiss walked over to her own desk, grabbing a pen and piece of paper and copying it down exactly.

While Crue's handwriting wasn't exactly the neatest, it was still legible. Weiss thought back to the look of horror when Crue first heard about the tests, and the current item she had in her hands. He was probably making up for his lack of studying.

Weiss let out a yawn as she wrote. "Did you stay up all night studying?" Crue asked, not looking back at the heiress.

"Um." Weiss hesitated. "Maybe." She did have a lot of notes on her scroll, and stayed up well past midnight going over them.

As she thought about it, she noticed Crue's head dipping ever so often, as though he was fighting a losing battle of consciousness. "Crue. When was the last time you slept?" She asked the Faunus.

"I kinda remember falling asleep at three, and then waking up at six." "That's not heal-" "Three days ago." The heiress and the wolf stared at each other, as Weiss reached over and took of Crue's glasses.

She instinctively flinched, seeing the bag under his eyes. "How are you awake right now?"

"Spite and caffeine." Crue answered, gesturing to the mug by his desk.

"You need to sleep." Weiss frowned.

"I don't." Crue argued.

"You do."

"I don't."

"You do."

"I don't."

"You do."

"I do."

"You don't."

"Gah!" Weiss cried, grabbing her head.

"Hah. Your butt just got Looney Toon'd." Crue chuckled, before falling slightly. "I'm good." He said immediately, righting himself.

Weiss frowned, seeing the sleep deprivation setting in. "Crue, remember what you said to Blake about not getting enough sleep?"

"Yep. I love double standards." Crue muttered, grabbing his mug and going to take a sip. When he found it empty, he frowned. "I'll be back in a minute." He stood, wobbling slightly.

Weiss watched as he left, a plan to get him to sleep already forming in her mind. As the others woke, she informed them of her plan. All they needed now was a little help from a certain exchange student.

…

"You want me to _what_?" Cinder Fall questioned, seeing Weiss Schnee standing before her.

"To knock out Crue. I doubt you'll have a problem with it, seeing as he did the same to you." Cinder frowned, causing Weiss to smirk seeing her plan fall into action. "Revenge is a dish best served cold."

"Some prefer it hot." Cinder muttered, but nodded. "I'll gladly put him under."

"Brilliant." Weiss smiled. "You can do it whatever way you want, just make sure he's out."

"Has he done something to anger you?" Cinder wondered.

"Not, necessarily." Weiss told her. "We are just, concerned for his health."

"You're concerned for his health, so you want me to knock him out?" Cinder questioned.

"I didn't say it was the best plan." The heiress huffed. "I just thought you would be the most likely to agree to it, aside from Cardin." She shuddered as she mentioned the bully's name. "And I do not wish to talk to him."

"Just let me know when." Cinder sighed, not particularly caring for the heiress' drama. She wouldn't even been agreeing to this if it weren't for her previous match with the Faunus.

"Thank you Cinder. It's nice to have someone I can trust." Weiss bowed lightly, before walking away from the girl. Cinder closed the door and chuckled darkly.

"Trust. Right." She walked back to the room, where Emerald and Mercury were both waiting.

"What did the heiress want?" Emerald questioned, looking up from her scroll.

"For me to render Cullen unconscious." The half-Maiden answered with a completely straight face. The two lackeys looked up in surprise.

"She wanted you to what?" Mercury asked slowly.

"To knock out Crue. And I shall. And by the Goddess it will be satisfying." She grinned evilly. Mercury and Emerald glanced at each other, almost feeling sorry for the Faunus. Almost.

…

"God daahham it." Crue said through a yawn, rubbing his eyes under his glasses. " _I have to balance regular college with vigilantism. I don't know how Spiderman manages."_ He truly was doing his best to imitate the hero, using his Semblance to hang upside down on a tree.

As he stood on the bottom of a branch, reading from a rather ancient looking text book, he didn't notice the person below looking up at him. He just began reading a passage on the allies of the King of Vale during the Great War, when something assaulted his senses.

"Somethings burning." He realised, the smell of burning wood invading his nostrils. He looked to his side, seeing part of the branch he was on burning away. "So that's how we're starting today." Crue muttered as the branch broke, Crue falling with it.

"SHONOFACUNT!" Crue exclaimed when he hit the ground. "Ugh. Channelled my inner Sean Connery there." He stood, rubbing the back of his head angrily. "Who did thaahat?" He yawned again. He looked around his immediate vicinity, but found no one.

If he had decided to check behind the tree, he would have seen Cinder doing her best not to burst out laughing. "Fuahcking piece of ashsaaAHH! I can't curse when I'm tired!" Crue sighed, grabbing his book and cracking the joints in his neck

"Maybe I'll have better luck in the library." He grumbled, walking in the direction of the building. He got about two steps, before he felt an arm tighten around his neck. He dropped his book as his eyes went wide.

He moved his hands back, grabbing onto the waist of whoever grabbed him. He bent forward quickly, and threw his arms up. He felt the arm leave, and then heard an "Oof!" Crue stood straight, looking down to see who had tried to choke him.

"Cinder? The fuaahhack, are you doing?" The Faunus questioned through a yawn, seeing the half-Maiden lying on the ground groaning in a rather, strange way.

"I was _trying_ to knock you out. Schnee asked me to. Apparently she's concerned for your health." Cinder informed him, standing to meet his gaze beneath his glasses.

"Weiss asked you to knock me out?" Crue repeated, before looking to the side. "Well I wasn't gonna sleep any other way." He muttered. "Then why did you agree to it? I know you don't care for mahay health."

"True. Which is why I agreed." Cinder acknowledged. "I just wanted the opportunity to pay you back for our spar a few days ago." The mention of said activity caused Crue to look down to Cinder's abdomen, the space obscured by her Haven uniform.

The action did not go unnoticed, and Cinder crossed her arms over said area, an unusual blush on her face. "I got rid of that, thank you very much." She seethed.

"You're welcome." Crue replied, a grin on his features that could only be described as 'shit-eating'. The sight made Cinder heat up, and not in a way she wanted. "Shame you can't choke out a person taller than you."

The mention of height caused the half-Maiden to realise why there was a pain in her neck. From craning it upward to try and meet Crue's eyes. It also made her realise that Crue was, in a way, looking down on her.

She grit her teeth. "Well, perhaps we should change that." Crue's eyes widened beneath his glasses, but in his sleep deprived state was not fast enough to prevent Cinder's next actions.

She jabbed his throat with a fist, feeling a certain amount of anger at herself for copying his moves. Crue coughed, and Cinder moved around the Faunus rapidly, jabbing at his knees and causing him to fall.

Once he had fallen to his knees, and was significantly shorter than Cinder, the half-Maiden placed her arm around his neck once more, and pulled. "If you aren't properly rested, you aren't much of a threat."

"Still -gahk- able to -hgk- do this!" Crue put all of his strength into his legs, and pushed. He sent both himself and Cinder crashing into the tree he was studying in, the raven haired girl's head hitting the bark.

She coughed roughly, but held on. Crue struggled against her grip, grabbing her arm with both hands and attempting to pull her off. "You sure are -ahg- going through a lot of -hgsk- trouble for this!" He choked out. "You sure you -gakh- don't like me -grrsk- or something!"

Her grip tightened immensely. "Okagh! Okagk! You hate me! Hate my guts!" Crue slapped her arms in a final futile attempt to free himself, but failed. His consciousness left him, and he slumped back.

Cinder hadn't been expecting the sudden weight, and so fell under him. Her rear hit the grass, and her back rested against the tree, as Crue slipped from her grasp. Cinder sighed in relief, reaching into her pocket and grabbing her scroll to inform Weiss.

" _It's done. Too ominous. He's taken care of. Still too ominous."_ She thought of what to send her, while attempting to stand. She found herself unable to, and when she looked down, she found out why.

Whatever way Crue had fallen, he had somehow ended up with his shoulders and head on her lap, keeping her pinned to the ground. "How in the Hell…?" She breathed out, attempting to move the Faunus.

Unfortunately, the previous scrap had sapped much of her energy, and the bang against the tree had not helped much either. With a growl, she realised what she needed to say to Weiss. " _Send assistance. He's unconscious, but also on top of me. I can't move."_

She debated sending a picture, but realised that could qualify as blackmail. Not that she would be embarrassed about being caught in this position. Of course not. Not with this arrogant, annoying, attractive man on her lap.

"Wait what was that last one?" Cinder backtracked her thought process, and blushed upon realising what she had thought. Did she find Crue attractive? She had never given it much, if any thought, aside from after her spar. She was too busy plotting, making sure her plans succeeded to even think about such a thing.

But now, while she was stuck under the Faunus, she may as well think about it. It wasn't like she _actually_ liked him or anything. The fool. She inspected his features, while keeping in mind that he hadn't apparently slept for three days.

She looked at his hair, slightly tousled from their scrap. "No rival of mine is going to have unkempt hair." She frowned, running her fingers through it as she tidied it up. Her fingertips brushed against the base of his ears, causing them to twitch, their golden colour reminding Cinder of his eyes.

" _His eyes."_ Cinder remembered, the different colours of them. With great care, she lifted the glasses from his face. His eyelids remained shut. " _Of course."_ She rolled her own eyes, realising that if his were open she probably wouldn't be in this situation.

The bags around his eyes were noticeable, and Cinder could easily believe the lack of sleep now. " _Three days."_ She wondered how he managed it. It was obvious how he hid it anyway. She looked at the glasses in hand, then checked the surrounding area.

She slowly put the sunglasses on her own face. " _I… I don't know what I expected. They're just glasses."_ She shook her head, but kept them on. " _I'd say they could be magic if I didn't know better."_ She sighed, resting her head against the bark.

"… _He has freckles…"_ She noticed. Not exactly prominent, they looked rather faded, and stood out strangely against his somewhat pale skin. " _For someone apparently from Hibernia, you aren't very tan."_ Seeing as the country was halfway between Menagerie and the south of Anima, one would assume they got good weather there.

That was another thing about the Faunus, she didn't know where he was from. Only assumptions. She researched, but found nothing. The name Crue Cullen didn't even exist. It was only mentioned in the article about the White Fang around a week ago.

"Who are you?" She murmured, looking at the boys rising chest. It fell slowly, indicating that he was still asleep. "Where is she?" Cinder wondered, grabbing her scroll. Weiss had yet to respond, so she contacted the only other member of that team she tolerated.

"Blake. Please come to the tree near your dorm. I require assistance."

…

"When you said you needed help, this wasn't what I had in mind." Blake spoke aloud, looking at the sight before her. Cinder didn't respond, which made her raise an eyebrow. "Cinder?" She looked at the girls chest, seeing it rise and fall slowly.

Blake found her hand resting against her mouth as she realised that the raven haired girl had fallen asleep. With Crue's glasses on. And his head in her lap. Good God, this was better than her books.

" _Yang wouldn't forgive me."_ She thought, taking out her scroll and snapping a few pictures. " _Next time he says I purr, I'll just show him these."_ She put her scroll away, walking over to Cinder and lightly shaking her shoulder.

The girl responded immediately, grabbing Blake's wrist with a grip like iron. "Cinder!" She hissed. The grip immediately lessened, as Cinder realised her situation.

"Blake? How long, did it take you?" The raven haired girl asked, looking down to see Crue still there.

"Not long." She responded, gently lifting up Crue's head so Cinder to get out from under it. She scooted out, and the Faunus laid the males head down onto the soft grass. "I headed over as soon as you messaged me, but I was on the other side of Beacon."

"Well, thank you for your assistance." Cinder nodded, walking away from both Faunus.

"Um, Cinder." Blake called after her. The half-Maiden turned with a raised eyebrow. Blake pointed to her eyes, causing Cinder to poke near her own. When she realised she was still wearing Crue's sunglasses, an unusual blush appeared on her.

"I was merely trying to see the reason people enjoy wearing such things." She defended, taking them off and throwing them to the Faunus. Blake caught them easily, glancing at them before putting them on herself.

"I don't see the appeal." She muttered.

"Thank you." Cinder agreed, walking back to her own dormitory.

Blake looked down at Crue, shaking her head. She had initially disagreed with Weiss' decision of getting someone to knock him out, but realised that he would not be swayed the same way she had from Yang.

Although maybe if they had gotten Ruby to give him the puppy dog eyes it would have worked. With a shrug, the Faunus sat down next to the tree, taking out a book and flipping to the page she last read.

Before she did, her eyes wandered to the sleeping Wolf Faunus. " _I wonder what you're dreaming about."_

…

" _Behind you!" I ducked as I felt the breeze off a sword soar over my head. There was a cry of pain, and I looked up to my saviour._

" _Thanks Aster." I raised my hand, and he gripped it tight. I looked to my friend, his crown shining with blood. "Now, if you could do the same." I raised my hurley behind my head, gripping it's ashen handle._

 _The King of Vale did as I requested, and my hurl connected with an unfortunate Atlesian. "We Kings have to stick together." I told him, pressing my back against his._

" _I was not aware Hibernia had a monarchy." He told me, slashing with his sword, the only weapon he brought to the battlefield._

" _Mine is a more metaphorical kingship." I replied, slamming my hurl down on the head of an enemy._

" _Either way, I am glad that you decided to join me in this battle." Aster told me earnestly._

" _Oh please. Overwhelming odds with little to no chance of survival? How could I refuse?" I joked, bashing an enemy's nose in with the butt of my hurl._

" _Our numbers are falling." An ally cried, before being silenced by the arrow of a Mistralian. I scowled, regretting the loss of another friend._

" _Do you recall the ability I have that we both agreed was a bad idea?" I called to Aster over my shoulder._

" _Yes. I am beginning to rethink my decision." He roared, slashing a foe in two._

" _I would very much like your express permission!" I exclaimed, the sword of an Atlesian getting caught in the wood of my hurl. I kicked out, and crashed the flat of my weapon against his head._

 _I felt a hand grip my shoulder, and time seemed to slow. I turned to the King of Vale, and got down on one knee._

" _I, Aster Zoro, King of Vale, give you full permission to, how did you describe your ability?" He asked, the barest hint of a smirk on his face._

" _Ríastrad_ _." I replied, a bigger smirk on mine._

" _You may activate your, ríastrad."_

" _Thank you, but you had better use your Semblance. We need the upper hand." I told him. With a grim expression, he nodded._

 _Time returned to normal, and I unleashed my inner Wolf._

" _Go forth!" Aster decreed. "And bring our enemies to Hell! Show them no mercy! Dar-"_

...

"AGH!" Crue awoke with a jump, looking around for the source of noise. He did not find the source, but he did find something else. Something small. And cute.

"Zwei?" Crue yawned out. "What are you doing?" He stood straight, the joints in his knees popping. The corgi looked to him, barking and then pawing at the tree. Looking up, Crue saw Blake gripping onto a tree branch for dear life.

"Blake? Why are you up there?" He asked the Faunus.

"Because of him!" She hissed, jabbing a finger at Zwei. The dog panted heavily, tongue hanging out of his mouth. Crue sighed, grabbing the dog and hoisting him under his arm. Activating his Semblance, the Faunus walked up the side of the dorms, where the open window of RWBY's dorm awaited him.

He got to the windowsill, and placed Zwei inside on the ground. He sat on his rump, smiling up at the Faunus dumbly. "Stay." Crue instructed, raising a single finger.

"Arf!" Zwei nodded, his stubby tail constantly wagging.

"Good boy." Crue said, reaching in and rubbing the corgi's head. He barked appreciatively, and trotted in a small circle, before falling down, eyes closed.

"He's gone!" Crue called down to Blake, walking down the side of the wall to meet her at the same level. She sighed in relief, and looked down at the ground. Slowly, she looked back up to Crue. "You can't get down, can you?"

"…No…" She whimpered, ears flat against her head within her bow. Crue sighed, and crouched down. He sprang from the wall, and landed on the tree trunk.

"Come here." Crue held his arms out, prompting the Faunus to slowly crawl down from the tree, and latch onto Crue. "Sometimes I wonder why people make generalisations about us based on our characteristics, but with stuff like this..."

"I'd smack you if I wasn't afraid of falling." Blake hissed, looking at the slowly approaching ground.

"At least you'll land on your feet." Crue laughed, before receiving a whack on the back of his head. His grip slackened, and Blake's increased dramatically.

"Ok! Ok!" She apologised. Crue smirked, and gently let her down onto the grass once he had both feet planted firmly on the ground.

"There we go kitty cat." Crue said, patting her bow gently. Blake blushed, and began purring softly. "Aww, you purr."

The raven haired girl's eyes widened as she stepped away from Crue, staring at him as if he had just offended her ancestors. "Why are you wearing my glasses?" The Wolf Faunus noticed himself looking back at him.

"Oh, right." She took them off, and blinked several times. "Cinder was wearing them when I found you."

"Uhh…" Crue droned out. "Ominous phrasing much?"

"She knocked you out. And you fell on her." Crue let out a laugh after hearing that. "And you fell in a way that ended up with your head in her lap."

Crue's mouth shut immediately. "What?" He asked. " _Dude! The fuck!? Why?! What kind of harem bullshit are you trying to pull?!"_ "How am I still alive?" He said softly.

"You were too heavy for her to move. She messaged me for help." Blake explained. Crue's face fell as he looked down and poked his stomach. "You're six foot two! It's not an overweight thing!" Blake exclaimed.

"Right! Right. I knew that." Crue replied, smoothing out his shirt, before looking down and frowning again. "I have been drinking a lot of tea lately…"

"You're not fat!" Blake cried, chopping Crue's head. The male winced, hands covering where she hit.

"Hey!" Crue growled. "I haven't slept for three days! Forgive me for being a bit overdramatic!" He huffed, breathing heavily. Eventually, he took a deep breath. "Tóg go bog é."

"Can I have my glasses please?" He requested, holding out his hand. Blake acknowledge, giving him his sunglasses. He put them on immediately, and felt relief wash over him. "Where are the others?"

"At the library. But I sent them a message to come over." Blake told him.

"Why?" Crue asked.

"Because I had finally managed to get into a comfy reading spot." Blake grumbled. "Then the dog had to go and ruin it." She nestled back into a crook in the tree, wiggling around until she got a good spot.

Crue rolled his eyes, and grabbed the book that was lying a few feet away. He picked it up, but did not read. " _Was that a dream dream? Or a symbolism dream? I recognised no one. Although, that King guy kinda looked like Ozpin."_

" _And that sword."_ He frowned. " _Next chance I get, I'm gonna get a good look at Jaune's sword."_ He was about to continue with his study, when he heard voices approaching. He looked up, seeing the other members of RWBY approaching.

He scowled when he saw Weiss, the heiress apparently berating Ruby for something. " _She asked Cinder to knock me out._ _ **Get revenge.**_ _How?"_

"I don't know why you called us here Blake." Weiss complained, stopping before the girl, the other two sitting down on the other side of the tree. "There's nowhere flat to write." She said, holding her note book aloft.

" _Don't say it._ _ **Say it.**_ _Don't say it._ _ **Revenge.**_ _Good point, but I want to live._ _ **Say it and run.**_ _Deal."_ Crue nodded, resigning himself to his fate.

"How about your chest?"

The gasp that left Weiss' mouth was so magnificent that Crue would have sworn it sucked in most of the surrounding oxygen. "I-You-How dare-"

"And this is where I take my leave." Crue mumbled, using Yang's guffawing as a cover to climb up the tree. He got around halfway up, before he felt a tug on his clothes. He turned to see a black glyph on his back. "Uh oh."

"GET BACK HERE!" Weiss demanded, pulling sharply. Crue felt himself get pulled back, but his feet stuck to the tree.

"No tha-gahk-nk you!" Crue responded, his blazer beginning to choke him. "Been choked enough today!"

Weiss gave a final strong tug, and Crue fell from the tree. Right into Yang's lap. "Well look it, it's raining men." There was an awkward silence after that statement. "I really thought your scroll would start playing."

"Crue!" Weiss said shrilly, her face red. Whether from anger or embarrassment, who could say. Crue instinctively held onto Yang.

"Protect me." He whispered.

"You can protect yourself." Yang chuckled, pushing him off.

"I demand you apologise!" Weiss exclaimed, huffing and crossing her arms, staring up at the now standing boy.

"No." Crue said without a care.

"Why not?!" Crue winced, cleaning out one of his ears.

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe because you basically hired a hitman to take me out!?" The Faunus threw his arms out wide, staring down at the girl.

Weiss opened to mouth to argue, but found it closing awkwardly. "Oh. That."

"Yeah. That." It was Crue's turn to cross his arms and glare.

"Well you see-" Weiss turned tail and ran, causing Crue to blink in surprise.

"HEY! I'M NOT ALLOWED RUN FROM YOU! YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED RUN FROM ME!" He exclaimed, sprinting after the heiress.

"Wow. What's got him all in a huff?" Yang wondered. Slowly, Blake took out her scroll and moved into Yang's line of sight. The blonde's eyes widened, and an inhuman squeal erupted from her mouth as she made to grab it.

Blake retracted her hand instantly, causing the brawlers lilac eyes to widen in despair. "Blaakeeee…" She moaned.

"You aren't getting these." The raven haired girl smirked. "This is my blackmail. You have your own. Though, I may be tempted to send you one if you do some favours for me."

"Pleaaase." Yang tried implementing Ruby's tactic of puppy dog eyes, but hers were less effective than her younger sisters.

"No." Blake replied coolly, going back to her book. Yang groaned, her head hitting the bark of the tree. She cracked open a lilac eye, and saw a sight that made her snort.

"Put me down!" Weiss cried indignantly, batting her fists against Crue's chest.

"You caught her?" Ruby asked, surprised at seeing her partner being carried under Crue's arm like someone would a rather large handbag.

"Ruby." Crue deadpanned. "Six foot two." He gestured to himself. "Five foot three. In heels." He gestured to Weiss, who crossed her arms in a huff.

"You're lucky my sister isn't here." She murmured, still in Crue's grasp.

"Yeah, tell Winter I said hi." Crue rolled his eyes.

"How did you kn- Oof!" Weiss was unceremoniously dropped onto her rear, and Crue grabbed the book he had been studying, and leapt high into the tree.

"I'll be studying now." He told them, climbing as high as he could. "If you want me do sleep, do it yourself."

"Is that an invitation?!" Yang called up from her place at the base of the tree.

"Try me!" Crue yelled back, grumbling and opening the book. The blonde looked as if she genuinely would take him up on that offer, before deciding her current spot was too comfy.

The group quietened down, reading their various text books, most of them with their mind elsewhere. One example was Ruby. _"I wonder if I should get more lightning Dust bullets for Crescent Rose."_

Another, was Weiss, who had one question repeating in her mind. _"How does Crue know Winter, does Winter know Crue?"_

"Hey guys!" The four of them were brought out of their study by someone calling out to them. They looked up to see their sister team approaching, Nora being the one who called out to them.

"Hey Nora." Ruby and Yang waved back. Weiss gave a simple nod of acknowledgement. Blake was too deep in her smut to respond.

"You guys mind if we join you?" Jaune asked, hefting a textbook.

"Sure. More the merrier." Yang smiled, scooting over slightly, inviting them to sit. The sister team sat down around the tree, each of them studying various excerpts of their curriculum.

"Somethings missing." Jaune murmured a short while after sitting down. His words caused the others to feel a strange sense of aloofness as they agreed with him. But what was missing?

"Got it." Yang nodded, raising her arm and thumping it against the tree. The others raised an eyebrow, before hearing a series of cracks, followed by a high pitched squeal, and a final thump.

"Why….?" Crue groaned out, hands between his legs as he cupped his groin, laying prone on the grass.

"My bad." Yang called. "Didn't think you'd hit so much on the way down." Crue raised his head to glare at her, before noticing the other four people at the base of the tree.

"This a intervention or something?" Crue asked.

"An." Weiss frowned. "And no, we are just studying together."

"Then why did you knock me out of the tree?" Crue groaned, sitting up.

"So you could join us." Weiss replied. "I'm still mad about the flat thing by the way." Her eyes narrowed at Crue.

"And I'm still mad at the whole hitman thing." Crue scowled. Weiss turned a shade of red at that, and went back to her book.

"Hitman?" Jaune asked uncertainly.

Crue rolled his eyes, taking out his book. "Weiss, the dear that she is, was worried I wasn't getting enough sleep." The heiress raised her book higher to hide her face. "So, what does she decide to do to remedy the situation?"

The rhetorical question caused the members of team JNPR to glance at each other. "Ask an exchange student, that I have a known bad history with, to knock me out."

Their heads swivelled to the platinum haired girl, who had pressed her book so close to her nose that one would think she was trying to absorb the information through osmosis. "Weiss? Did you do that?" Pyrrha asked.

"Perhaps." She whispered out. Emerald eyes widened as the Spartan turned back to Crue. "Did she succeed?"

"Yes. Obviously and unfortunately." Crue rubbed his eyes under his shades. "I've never lost a fight without some kind of handicap."

"Ehem!" Yang coughed loudly.

"That counts too." Crue told her. The blonde whirled her head around so face that her Yang smacked Ren who was sitting next to her, giving the boy a surprised look.

"What do you mean there was a handicap?" She asked in shock.

"I fought Weiss like, two matches before you. My Aura hadn't fully recovered." Crue told the brawler, only having realised the fact while he was day dreaming in the tree. " _Not sure if that's your whole thing or not but…"_

Yang's eyes widened, and her mouth fell open. "We need to fix this." She stated, standing and walking over to Crue. The Faunus, realising what that meant, began backpedalling.

"But we have to study!" He tried, backing away from the ever boisterous blonde.

"Study later! Fight now!" Yang cried, increasing her pace. Crue also cried, in fear, as he began running from the blonde.

"But I haven't slept! That's still a handicap!" He exclaimed, increasing his speed once he saw the blonde closing in.

The other seven watched them run with amused expressions. "Five lien he passes out before she can fight him." Nora called out.

"I've got ten he runs up the side of a wall so she can't get him. That's what I'd do." Jaune countered. There was a brief time spent arguing over different bets, before returning to their studying. A short while later, Yang returned in a huff, without Crue.

"He ran up the CCT tower." She said shortly, sitting back down in her spot, her arms crossed.

"Yes!" Jaune cried out, before wincing under Yang's glare. "Uh, sorry." He apologised, while holding his hand behind his back and gesturing for the others to pay up. The knight was a fair few lien richer when he sat back down.

"Wonder what Crue's doing now." Ruby hummed, reading an extract on Hibernia's involvement in the Great War.

…

" _Just keep running. Just keep running. What do we do? We run."_ Crue sang in his head as he scaled the CCT tower, not wanting to check behind him in case Yang was somehow there. It was only when his legs began to burn, that he slowed down.

Eventually, he came to a stop, panting lightly. "I'm getting better at running. Mostly at running away. Don't know how to feel about that." He muttered, turning around and looking for Yang. "Of course she's not there. She can't follow me up here." He palmed his hand against his face.

A series of knocks scared the Faunus, causing him to jump. He turned around, seeing Ozpin looking at him humorously. Crue stared at the headmaster, as he took a hand and jabbed a finger down. Crue's eyes widened as he shook his head rapidly, before cracking open an eye and looking down.

"God daaaaaaa…" He trailed off, his body falling, but not toward the ground. He found himself pressed against the glass of Ozpin's office, both parties looking surprised. "I think… I just found out something new about my Semblance."

Ozpin walked to the side, opening a window and inviting Crue in. "You always make the strangest entrances." The headmaster smiled. "In fact, I believe your landing strategy is the most successful post on this academy's blog."

"This place has a blog?" Crue asked, grabbing his scroll from his pocket.

"Yes, run by one of the second years. Miss Adel I believe." Ozpin informed him. "Beacon Blog, I think the name is." Crue searched the term, and found the blog immediately.

"Mother-" He glanced up to see Ozpin, his headmaster, elder and overall person he shouldn't curse in front of, staring at him with a raised eyebrow. "Hubbard." Eyes back on the screen, he frowned, seeing a repeating GIF of him slamming into a tree and sliding down,

" _Are they called GIFs here?"_ Crue wondered. He looked up to Ozpin. "What would you call this?" He asked, turning his scroll around and showing it to the man.

"Painful." Ozpin smirked. "You really need to work on your landing strategy."

The Faunus growled lightly. "Seeing as you flung me into the forest _without_ any weaponry, I was forced to improvise."

"Oh? And what was your improvisation?" Ozpin hummed.

"To hit the least painful looking thing." He glanced back down at the scroll. "I missed."

"Obviously." The headmaster smiled. Crue glared at him, as he sat down on his chair. "And it's called a GIF, by the way."

Crue's eye twitched, the Headmaster pronouncing it differently to how he usually did. Before he could correct, and more than likely argue with him, a screen popped up before his desk, with a phone icon on it.

Ozpin's face morphed into a scowl. "The council has contacted me earlier than expected." He grimaced, glancing at Crue. "I suggest you take your leave, these meetings can be quite dull." Crue nodded, heading towards the elevator as Ozpin answered the call.

"Ozpin. You have yet to respond to us at all regarding the incident at the docks earlier this week. Once more it was White Fang, and once more it involved your students! These things need to be dealt with as soon as possible!" A faceless man on a video feed said angrily.

"And two of them were both Faunus themselves." A woman said in a snide tone. "If they are anything like that Belladonna girl, we will have to reconsider exactly who you let into this school, as well as your positi-" "Damn you're being a bitch."

Ozpin's eyes widened dramatically, as Crue began walking back towards him. "Who said that?!" The woman shrilly demanded.

"I did." Crue said, popping his head into frame. "And I'd say it again if I have to." He stood next to Ozpin, glaring at the monitor. "Because you really are being an _absolute bitch_ right now." While Crue could not see, he assumed the woman was incapable of speech out of shock.

"So, if you have any problems with Faunus," Crue lowered himself slightly, so he assured his ears were in frame. "I'd love to hear them."

"Who in the Hell are you?!" The woman demanded.

"You don't know who I am?" Crue said darkly. "Good. Let's keep it that way!" He smiled, clapping his hands together lightly. "So, you think that because two Faunus fought against a known Faunus terrorist group, that it's a problem."

She did not respond. "When instead, it just might be the fact, that the two Faunus actually have a few brain cells, and know that terrorism is no way to equality, and want to make sure that Faunus don't get a worse reputation than they already have."

"So that they don't get treated wrongly by people like you." He stated. All through this, Ozpin sat next to him, face like stone. "And you." Crue pointed his finger at the screen. "Whoever was talking shite about Ozpin's time management. You were being a right prick."

"Do you have any idea how hard it is to run a school?" He asked rhetorically.

"N-" "No." Crue finished for him. "You don't. Now, imagine if that school had superpowered teenagers, who were constantly battling both against the forces of Grimm, creatures that could kill _you_ if they get the chance, and puberty."

"Doesn't sound very simple does it?" He asked.

There was a sort of muffled agreement through the connection. "No, it doesn't. So, if you're quite done dragging this man's name through the mud, and have nothing positive to say, kindly, get the fuck out of here."

A short moment later, the call dropped. Crue stood, smiling happily. "I hate politicians. And by God, that was satisfying."

He turned to Ozpin, who regarded him with a curious smile. "Have I ever mentioned how glad I am I decided to enrol you here at Beacon?" He asked.

"You could stand to mention it more." Crue smirked.

"You truly have saved me from quite a boring meeting that would have more than likely been just another excuse to insult me." Ozpin smiled, leaning on his chair. "I suppose I am in your debt. If there is anything you wish for, if it is within my power, I can get it for you."

" _Sweet Mary Mother of God I have a favour from Ozpin. I could use this to end Cinder, and Salem."_ Crue realised. " _But, would he believe me? I'd have to explain everything. That I'm not from here, that he's a cartoon."_

" _It could change, everything. And then, I wouldn't know what happens."_ Crue frowned lightly. " _I can't tell him. If I do, I don't know what I could change. Oh God, what have I changed already?"_

"I've got nothing for you right now," Crue decided. "But when I need to cash in that favour, I'll be sure to let you know." He smirked lightly at Ozpin.

Ozpin smiled back. "Very well. And perhaps now, I shall give you a bit more forewarning next time I decide to launch you from a cliff."

Crue chuckled deeply. "That's all I ask for."

* * *

 _So now Crue has a favour from Ozpin. Whatever could he use that for? And he has his reasons for not telling him about Cinder. For one, he doesn't even know if he'd be believed. If someone came to you, telling you that you were nothing more than a cartoon would you believe him? Or send him to the nearest mental ward._

 _What else happened? Oh yeah, Cinder is a tsundere. That idea I got mostly from your reviews. Speaking of which, a lot of you want Crue and Winter to meet for some reason. I don't know why exactly, but I might try and weave it in somewhere._

 _I think that's all. If you have any questions, ask them. If you have any reviews, write them. And as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	20. Watership Tease

" _Of all the challenges I have faced so far, this is by far, the most… challenging."_ Crue thought, as he stared at the exam before him. " _You're the Author here, not me. Don't blame me for not being able to create a bloody speech that MLK would be proud of every time I think."_

All around him, the sound of pens scratching on paper indicated that almost everyone was doing quite well on these exams. Almost everyone.

Out of the corner of his eye, Crue saw Jaune turn a page, and lose all colour in his face. On the other side was team CRDL, Dove seemed to be doing well, but the others looked like they were writing their last will and testament instead of an exam.

" _I can do this."_ Crue repeated to himself, as he continued writing. " _I can do this. I can do-_ _ **Ladies and gentlemen.**_ _Oh no._ _ **This is Mambo Number Five.**_ _"_

…

"Anyone else want to leave for Nepal and become a goat?" Crue groaned out, lying face down on the roof of RWBY's dorm. There were murmurs of agreement, before Weiss spoke up.

"Where's Nepal?" She asked the Faunus, who froze at the question.

"Crap! I wrote that down on my exam and it doesn't exist!" He cried out, smacking his head against the ceiling.

"You seem to have your own little world." Blake murmured. "Full of all these strange places that we don't know."

"Hey, gotta entertain myself somehow." Crue shrugged, secretly sweating bullets. "I mean, maybe it's just cause I can't remember the world as it is now. I made my own one."

"Cool." Ruby said, reading from a gun magazine. "Maybe you should be a writer." Crue glanced towards the ceiling, and felt as though he had just made eye contact with God. The kind of eye contact where your friend just unknowingly said a secret between the you and a different friend while they were in the room.

"Nah. My handwritings terrible. I can type pretty fast though." Crue told them.

"Yes, I've seen your writing." Weiss nodded. "It's… legible."

"You can say terrible." Crue shrugged. "I don't mind. Nobody's perfect." " _Although, seeing as you're making me a Gary Stu, that last sentence may be redundant."_

"Just let me sleep." Yang groaned out, face down in her bed, still fully dressed. "We don't have any more exams do we?"

"We have Grimm Studies." Weiss informed her. Everyone bolted upright to stare at the heiress, granted Crue was on the ceiling so sat up instantly, creating a rather odd sight. "It's a practical exam."

The four students slumped back in relief. "Phew. Now I can just let my baby do the talking." Ruby sighed contently, no doubt imagining herself and Crescent Rose sweeping through hordes of Grimm.

"I just want to sleep until then." Crue muttered, curling up on the ceiling.

"Ditto." Yang yawned.

"You wouldn't want to sleep if you had slept properly already." Weiss called out. The two blondes glared at the heiress, before making eye contact with another, and smirking.

"Well Weiss, that's rather flat of you." Yang hummed.

"Yeah, you've got no curve to that opinion whatsoever." Crue agreed. These sentences made absolutely no sense, but served their purpose.

Weiss' teeth ground against each other, almost emitting sparks. "I'll have you know, that there is nothing wrong with not having damn melons on my chest." She growled at Yang.

Lilac eyes widened, as Crue placed his hand against his mouth and went: "Ooooooh."

"At least I don't get mistaken for a washboard." The brawler retorted. Crue made a similar noise once again, and turned to Weiss for her rebuttal.

"I-" She cut herself off. "Wait! This is just Crue pitting us against each other!" She accused, pointing at the Faunus. Crue stiffened, as Yang agreed.

"Come on, I wouldn't do that. I was just joining in because you mentioned the whole sleeping thing." He defended.

"Yeah!" Yang cried, now switching sides.

"All of you stop!" Blake groaned out, not able to concentrate on her book. The three arguing stared at each other, before nodding.

They each went back to what they were doing beforehand, Crue and Yang attempting to nap, and Weiss going over some last minute revision for their practical exam.

" _Just let me sleep dude."_ Crue yawned. " _I mean, those exams were bad enough. If you have anything worse planned I'm going to make sure to remain as passive as possible."_

There was silence in the room, which Crue greatly appreciated. For the few moments it lasted. A sudden loud knocking on the door caused everyone to jump, minus the Wolf Faunus, who groaned into the ceiling.

" _Nothing behind that door is going to make me move."_ He growled at the Author. The members of RWBY all glanced at each other before Weiss unlocked the door. It flew open immediately, almost hitting the heiress in the process.

"Help!" An out of breath Coco Adel burst into the room, looking around. The other girls were all on their feet, looking at the second year with wide eyes.

"What is it?! What happened?!" Yang exclaimed.

Coco took a short breath, and took of her glasses to stare at the team before her. "We accidentally showed Velvet _Watership Down._ "

" **YOU FUCKING WHAT?!** " Crue slammed down from the ceiling, grabbing Coco by the shoulders and staring at the brunettes wide eyes. Behind him, the members of team RWBY looked at each other confusedly. "WHY IN THE NAME OF GOD WOULD YOU DO THAT?!"

"It was an accident!" Coco cried out. "We thought it was a kids cartoon! It had bunnies on the cover!"

"YOU DIDN'T WATCH IT BEFOREHAND?!" Crue yelled.

"We had an exam. We got it so Velvet could watch it while we were doing the exam. We came back and she was huddled in the corner!" Coco explained.

Crue growled, before grabbing the girl by the arm and dragging her out of the dorm. "We're going to need blankets. And a lot of them. And some of your namesake."

The room was left silent, the four girls looking at each other in confusion. Weiss decided to speak up, voicing what everyone was silently thinking. "What just happened?"

…

"Velvet?" The Rabbit Faunus stiffened, peeking out between her arms to see who called to her. She saw two people a small distance in front of her, and two others peering in through the doorway. "What's up?"

She turned her attention back to the two closest to her, Coco and Crue. The girl whimpered lightly, ears flat against the back of her head. "She's been like this since we got back." Her leader whispered to Crue.

The Faunus nodded, gesturing for something behind him. "Velvet." He said softly. The girl's ears rose slightly, but the girl herself made no movement. "I'm going to put a blanket over you. Is that ok?" For several moments, there was silence and stillness in the room.

Then, a small nod, and Crue smiled gently. He draped a light pink blanket with small carrots over the girl's shoulders, backing up once it had enveloped her. Velvet gripped the blanket tightly, still shivering lightly.

"Coco." Crue called softly.

"What?" The brunette answered.

"No, I mean coco." Crue turned around to stare at the girl. "The drink." The older student made an 'o' with her mouth, and backed up grabbing the drink from a nearby desk. She gently handed it to Crue, the Wolf Faunus turning slowly and placing it down near Velvet.

"You don't have to drink it if you don't want to." Crue told her softly. Velvet nodded, but made no move to grab the hot chocolate.

"Now what?" Coco hissed into Crue's ear. The Faunus turned back, seeing Yatsuhashi and Fox looking at him too. Well, Fox was simply looking in the door. He didn't know whether or not it was directed at him.

"I don't know." Crue whispered back. "This was all I had thought of, aside from hugging." Because Crue was facing Coco, he didn't see how Velvet's ears perked upwards an inch when he mentioned that.

Coco, however, did see that action. With a small smirk, she quickly concocted a plan. "Alright, we'll leave you for a minute. Just let everything calm down." She turned, facing Yatsuhashi and Fox, and rapidly circled her index fingers around one another.

Yatsuhashi took the hint and backed up immediately, despite not wanting to leave Velvet alone with Crue, grabbing Fox by the back of his shirt to pull him along. Crue stood up, going to leave with the others, before feeling something tug on him.

Glancing down, he saw that Velvet had grabbed onto the fabric of his school trousers. "Don't go…" She said softly. Crue looked back up, seeing Coco make a 'watching you' motion with her fingers, before closing the door.

Crue gulped lightly, before turning back to Velvet, her arms still crossed under her chin, but looking up at Crue with her deep brown eyes. "Do you want me to hug you like that? Or do you want to stand?" He asked quietly.

"…Like this…" She murmured. Crue nodded, sitting down next to Velvet and slowly putting an arm around her and pulling her close. "Thank you." She said softly.

"Don't worry about it." Crue told her. "Honestly, I almost killed Coco when I heard what she did." He chuckled lightly.

"It wasn't her fault. She didn't know." Velvet countered, meekly reaching out and grabbing the cup of hot chocolate. "And I wasn't able to stop watching."

"Yeah, I don't blame you." Crue nodded. "It's like a car crash. You can't help but watch, no matter how horrifying it is." Both Faunus shuddered, and huddled closer together.

"Wait, you remember that movie?" Velvet asked Crue, eyes wide in surprise. Crue nodded.

"Yep. I think the name triggered something. Like, the moment Coco said _Watership Down_ , I remembered the whole movie. And all the bad that came with it. And then, I realised that she had said you had watched it." Crue explained. "So, I may have broken my whole, trying not to curse thing."

"You cursed because you were worried about me?" Velvet asked, not looking Crue in the eye, feeling more interested in the tiny marshmallows that dotted her hot chocolate.

"Well, yeah." Crue said awkwardly, tugging at his collar with the hand that wasn't resting on Velvet's shoulder. "I mean, you watched the one movie that _you_ of all people should never watch." Crue left unsaid the specific emphasis on the fact that Velvet was both timid, and a Rabbit Faunus.

"I know…" Velvet said sadly, and Crue tightened his grip on her slightly. "I just, have to block it out." She steeled herself, then took another sip of hot chocolate. The contrasting actions caused Crue to chuckle.

Velvet pouted up at him, and Crue found himself laughing harder, as she had a small whipped cream moustache. The Rabbit Faunus realised this after seeing her reflection in Crue's glasses. She quickly turned her head, wiping the cream off on the cuff of her sleeve.

She turned back to Crue to check her reflection once more, only to find he had taken his glasses off. His blue eyes shone mischievously. "You're always saying how I don't show my eyes much, thought I'd humour you."

Velvet frowned lightly, and reached to the side, trying to grab his glasses to view her reflection. He held them away from her with a smirk on his features. She leaned closer to grab them, and found herself falling.

Crue's eyes widened, as he moved his head back in order to avoid to avoid head-butting Velvet. He somewhat succeeded, but Velvets head ended up landing in the crook of his neck. The two Faunus froze, realising the situation they were now in.

And yet, neither of them made a move to change their position. "I think I spilled some of the hot chocolate." Velvet whispered, righting the mug and setting it down away from the two.

"I can get up, if you want." Crue spoke, praying to anyone that he remained level headed, in both senses of the word.

"No!" Velvet said, a bit too quickly. "No." She whispered, a small blush on her face. "This, this is fine. You're comfy." She laid her head down on Crue's chest, the boy screaming inside his head.

" _WHY!? WHY!? WHY!? WHY!"_ He asked the Author. " _YOU'RE A CLICHÉ BASTARD! VELVET AND THE WOLF FAUNUS OC! BE ORIGINAL FUCKING HELL! AND IT'S STILL TOO SOON!"_ Despite his words of anger, he still wrapped his arms around Velvet.

"… _That doesn't mean I'm going to let her suffer through this."_ He just hoped Yatsuhashi didn't come in and decide to squish him. Or Coco for that matter. The only person he'd be fine with coming in and finding them like this would be Fox.

And that's only because he wouldn't actually be able to see them. He did not change his position, even though he feared the possible repercussions of being caught like this. He shook his head lightly, careful not to disturb Velvet.

" _Being caught implies something wrong going on. There is nothing wrong with this."_ He convinced himself. "If Yatsuhashi kills me, I blame you." The Faunus muttered.

"That's fair." Velvet yawned out. Crue was somewhat surprised she was still awake. "Your heart is kinda, running a mile." The brunette murmured softly.

Crue groaned internally, willing his beating heart to slow down. It barely worked, but it was enough that Velvet could rest comfortably. " _I really hope that you've got nothing extra planned."_

…

"Can we go in now?" Yatsuhashi asked his leader, the giant looking surprisingly anxious. Coco sighed, shaking her head as she leaned against the door.

"Yatsu, you care about Velvet right?" She asked. The giant nodded his head. "And you know she likes Crue?" He nodded again, with a soft frown. "And I know you think of her like a sister, but this will help her. Promise."

"How do you know he's not… doing anything?" Yatsuhashi asked.

"Because he likes to live?" Fox pitched in, staring at a wall.

"Eh." Coco waved her hand lightly. "He's got some pretty morbid coping mechanisms from what I've seen."

"He does?" Yatsuhashi asked in surprise.

"Yeah." Coco nodded. "Going after one of the White Fang leaders on his own, crashing a Bullhead, taunting people he really shouldn't taunt. I heard that one from RWBY." She counted off her fingers.

"Maybe you don't have to worry about killing him then, Yatsu." Fox chuckled. "Guy seems perfectly capable of doing it himself."

This seemed to sate the giants worry for Velvet. If only a bit. "How long should we wait?" He asked.

"Hmm." Coco wondered. "I'd say until it goes quiet. Like, too quiet quiet."

"Oh. It got like that a while ago." Fox said idly, scratching at one of his many scars.

Both Coco and Yatsuhashi's eyes widened, as the former spun around and flung open the door. The two most worried for Velvet rushed in, locating the Rabbit Faunus immediately. Confliction arose within both second years.

Seeing Velvet sleeping peacefully, after experiencing that horrible movie that sent her in shock, definitely made them feel better for accidentally showing it to her. On the other hand… Crue.

"I feel, that I do not know how to feel." Yatsuhashi said slowly, wanting to both hug and harm Crue. Coco nodded in agreement, wanting to shake the boys hand, and introduce him to the wrong end of her mini-gun.

"Please don't kill me." The voice of the Wolf Faunus came softly. The two who were currently debating the request walked over, peering down at Crue as he lay under Velvet.

"Let me guess." Coco said sarcastically, crossing her arms. "She fell."

Crue gulped lightly. "Uh, kinda, actually."

The leaders eyes widened in surprise, before clicking her tongue. "You get yourself into situations like these a lot?"

"Unfortunately." Crue grumbled softly, still careful not to wake Velvet.

"Unfortu- What do you mean unfortunately?" Coco asked in shock. The Wolf Faunus frowned at her, before jerking his head down towards Velvet. The leader glared at him for a moment, before realising what he meant.

"Yatsu. Bring her to the bed." She instructed, the giant nodding in acceptance. He walked over to Crue, and gently lifted Velvet from atop of him. The girls face morphed into a brief frown, before returning to a neutral expression.

Yatsuhashi, for all his enormousness, was surprisingly delicate in setting Velvet down on her bed. Crue sighed in relief, sitting up. "Thanks."

"Don't thank me yet." Coco said, gripping Crue by his shirt and dragging him out of the room. The boy had to hunch over to be dragged, the size difference between himself and Coco rather noticeable.

"What did you mean unfortunately?" She asked, righting the boy and pressing him against a wall. Coincidentally, right next to Faunus.

"Hey Crue. How'd it go?" The blind hunter asked.

"Pretty well." Crue nodded, ignoring Coco's question. "She got a cream moustache from the hot chocolate, and tried to wipe it off. I took off my glasses so she couldn't check if it was gone. She tried to grab them, and fell on me."

The Faunus turned back to Coco with a raised eyebrow. "That help?"

"That still doesn't answer my question." The second year said, crossing her arms.

"Oh, uh, what was your question?" Crue asked awkwardly. The brunette rolled her eyes, but repeated the question.

"Why is being stuck under an attractive girl unfortunate? I know guys that would kill for an opportunity like that." Coco interrogated.

"Gee, I don't know." Crue said, somewhat sarcastically. "Probably because I'm still reeling over the fact that me and my old girlfriend broke up."

Coco's eyes widened dramatically, and so did Fox's. "You had a girlfriend?" The dark skinned hunter asked.

Crue nodded, surprise on his face. "Yeah, you didn't know?" He asked.

"No!" Coco exclaimed, before flinching and looking at the door. "No." She repeated, softer. "When did this happen?"

"Uh, bout a month ago?" Crue rubbed the back of his head. "It was, the day before you went on your mission. And we broke around a week ago. The day of the Breach."

"How did I not know about this?" Coco said, disappointment obvious in her voice. "I'm supposed to be the gossip girl here. I have failed." She leaned against the wall in exhaustion. Crue glanced at Fox, before realising that he would not be able to see it.

"Look, it doesn't matter ok?" Crue told Coco. "We're over. And I'd like a bit of a break before I'm forced into another relationship."

"Forced?" Fox asked. Crue's eyes went to the sky, knowing who he was directing the glare at.

"Let's just say, there have been a lot of situations I've been put in where I didn't want to be." He explained. "And all of them have involved attractive girls."

" _Wait. Fuck. I just called Cinder attractive. Fuck me."_ Crue groaned lightly.

"So, you don't want a girlfriend?" Fox asked, an eyebrow raised, looking in the general direction of Crue.

"I want it to be on my terms." The Wolf Faunus shook his head. "Like, someone who I think is attractive and I _actually_ wouldn't mind dating."

"You're describing Velvet." Coco pointed out.

"But not now!" Crue said, exasperated. "I don't want to jump from one girlfriend to another like it's fucking hopscotch."

"That was a terrible analogy." Coco said bluntly, causing the Faunus to whack his head against the wall. "But I get your point." Crue sighed in relief. "Still, little bit cocky to think Velvet would want to date you."

Crue turned red and began stammering. "T-That's not w-what I meant! You know that!" Coco blinked in surprise, having never seen the male act like this.

His embarrassment was cut off by the door to their dorm opening. They turned to see Yatsuhashi exit the room, holding Crue's glasses. He looked at the boy with a slight frown, before handing him the glasses.

"Thanks." Crue nodded, putting his glasses on and feeling a strange sensation wash over him. "I'm guessing you're annoyed at me." He quite easily deduced.

"Yes." Yatsuhashi nodded. "But you did help Velvet. So, less annoyed." He spoke briefly, Crue nodding in kind.

"That's fair." He accepted, before feeling a vibration in his pocket. He checked his scroll, and felt his eyes widen. "Um, how about a compromise?" He said quickly.

Yatsuhashi raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. "You can throw me." Crue told the giant. "But in a specified direction."

"Why?" He asked, his other teammates wondering the same.

"Because I'm about to be late for my practical Grimm Studies exam." The Faunus explained quickly. The second years eyes widened, and the tallest hunter nodded, grabbing Crue by the scruff of his neck, and opened a nearby window.

"Good luck." He said briefly, before hurling the Faunus in the direction of Port's classroom.

"Thank youuuuuuu…" Crue's voice was lost as he flew further from the second year dorms. The three elder students watched, as he crashed into the main doorway, and sprinted away.

"He'll be fine." Coco shrugged. "He beat a Beringel after all. Anything Port has should be child's play."

"Unless Port makes an exception for him, because he beat the Beringel." Fox pointed out. There was silence for a short moment before Coco spoke again.

"Well, he's fucked."

...

"Next, Crue Cullen." Port called out. He rubbed his hands together excitedly. "Oh, I've got a good one for you." He had led the students to a small arena he had created for the purpose of fighting Grimm. It reminded Crue of an old Roman colosseum, granted they never existed in this world.

"Was afraid you'd say that." Crue jumped down onto the grass floor of the arena, cracking his neck lightly. He had watched others perform their exams, those who had yet to go still in the stands. Along with people who just felt like watching.

"You can do it Crue!" Called out Ruby, her along with the rest of her team sitting in the front row, Blake waving a small flag with Crue's name on it.

" _Where does she get these?"_ The Faunus wondered, remembering the same flag being waved when he first fought the Crablante. " _Maybe I'm fighting another one of those."_ He hummed.

"I hope you appreciate this, I went through a great deal of effort to capture it." Port called, sitting down in his oddly throne like seat. "I gave it a name to suit it's difficulty!" He pushed a button, and a grate began to lift up, red eyes shining in the darkness.

"The next battle!" Port exclaimed, as the Grimm moved out of the darkness. "Crue! Vs! Edgar!" The Grimm was in full view right now, looking like a bull on steroids, with two tails, both of them spiked. It's entire head was covered in white bone, with a red design smack in the middle and two huge horns. Pointed right at Crue.

" _MOTHERFUCKER!"_ Crue exclaimed within his mind, seeing the Grimm paw the ground and snort, steam erupting from it's nostrils as it stared at Crue. " _REALLY?! FUCKING REALLY?! EDGAR!? I'M GOING TO-"_

Crue's train of thought was derailed when he dodged out of the way of the stampeding bull. "What's it's species?!" He called out to Port.

"Tauro." The professor responded joyfully. "Native to Vacuo don't you know." He began listing trivia as Crue attempted to defeat the Grimm.

He took his hurl out from around his back, and held it parallel to him. The Tauro huffed, and sped towards the Faunus. Crue waited, gripping his hurl tight. "Swing!" His eyes widened, as he swung the hurl at the beast, much to early.

With only a moment to spare, Crue jumped high, throwing his legs out to the side, the Grimm speeding under him. He landed and turned to the crowd. "Who said that!?" He exclaimed, throwing his hand out to gesture to the Grimm.

He scanned the crowd, his eyes briefly lingering on Cardin, who seemed to know he was staring at him. The bully shook his head, and pointed in a direction. Crue followed his finger, and found himself staring at amber eyes and raven hair.

Cinder gave a small wave, before pointing behind Crue. The boy's eyes widened, as he jumped into the air once more. The heels of his feet caught the Tauro's head, and would have sent Crue tumbling back, had he not activated his Semblance.

There Crue stood, feet glued to the skull of the Grimm as it sped around the arena. The Faunus raised up his hurl, and slammed the blunt end of it on Edgars snout. The Grimm let out a cry of pain, and dug its hooves into the ground.

Crue went flying forward, bouncing on the grass, Setanta and his glasses going flying, throwing up dirt and dust. He ended up in a small crater from a previous battle between Nora and an Ursa. The Grimm never stood a chance. With a groan, Crue stood up, staring at the Tauro.

" _How the fuck am I meant to beat a bull?"_ He wondered. His eyes scanned the crowd once more, falling on the team that he was closest too. "Hehe. Lightbulb."

To anyone else watching, it looked as though Crue had gone mad, sprinting right towards the Grimm, weaponless. Edgar huffed, pawing the ground before braying and charging towards the Faunus. Crue smirked, as he leaped towards the Grimm.

He landed on it's skull, and then kept running, before jumping once more at the end of the Tauro's body. Crue landed on the wall of the arena, surprising the group of people before him. "Ruby! Cloak! Please!" He extended an arm to the girl.

The leader was in such a state of surprise, that she unhooked her cloak and handed it to Crue without a second thought. Crue smiled, gripping the red fabric tightly. "Thanks!" He jumped down from the wall, and turned to face the Grimm.

He gave the cloak a quick flap, staring down the Grimm as he recalled being in a similar position not too long ago. "Olé." He called quietly, waving the cape. Edgar saw red, literally and figuratively, as it sped towards the Faunus.

Crue waited silently, before jumping back to the wall, and leaping from there. Crue went soaring over the Grimm, as it continued running, right into the wall. Landing with a small tumble, Crue rose, turning back to see his handiwork.

The bull Grimm, pulled back, trying to get it's horns out of the wall. Crue smirked, turning and grabbing his weapon. He quickly looked around for his glasses, but could not find them. He heard a deafening crack, and turned to see that Edgar had freed itself.

Crue gripped the cloak tightly, holding it to the side. " _Might as well give them a show."_ The Grimm sped towards him, and he waited carefully. At the last moment, he spun on his heel, dragging the cloak with him, as Edgar was but an inch from impaling the fabric.

"Olé!" Crue exclaimed, as he led the Grimm into the crater that he himself had landed in earlier. Edgar stumbled, the sudden change in angle causing it to fall onto it's side. Crue took the opportunity, changing Setanta into its sword form and leaping down to stab the Grimm.

The Tauro cried out, before whipping its tails, grabbing Crue's arms and flinging him away. The Faunus went flying, rolling in the dirt before slowly coming to a stop. He cracked open an eye, and shut it immediately, wincing as a bright light shone into his eyes.

He stood, and opened his eyes once more, seeing what aggravated his senses. His sunglasses were laying by his feet, the sun shining on them in such a way that the reflected light ended up shining directly into Crue's eye.

The Faunus frowned, as he reached down and picked them up. He glanced back at where he had been thrown from, and saw Edgar slowly climbing out of the hole, Setanta stuck in its torso. Crue growled, and placed his glasses on his face, covering his steely blue eyes.

He saw Ruby's cloak lying on the ground, too far away to grab before the Grimm got to him. Speaking of. Crue turned to face Edgar, who was currently pawing the ground and staring at him. The Faunus stared back, spreading his legs out and holding his hands up.

Edgar reared back, before stampeding towards him, horns pointed right at Crue. The Faunus did not move a muscle, sending worry through many of the watchers, minus one. Cinder Fall watched the battle with glee.

Truthfully, it was her who called out 'swing', hoping that Crue would be impaled as a result. She was not exactly taking her newfound possible attraction to the Faunus very well. She had never dealt with such feelings before, and thought that the best way to get rid of them would be to eliminate who was causing them.

As such, she persuaded Professor Port into getting a more dangerous Grimm for Crue to fight, rationalising it as only fair, seeing as he had fought a Beringel. The plump professor bought the bait easily, wishing for a brilliant match.

Cinder watched the battle, ignoring any feelings that tried to rise seeing Crue thrown around, and his muscles bulging as he was swinging his hurl, with his golden hair waving in the wind, and his eyes- " _Damn it."_ Cinder cursed mentally, giving her head a light shake in order to dispel those thoughts.

She returned her focus to the match, where Crue was still as a statue in the face of the oncoming Grimm. In Crue's mind, there was only one thought. " _This had better fucking work."_

There was a communal gasp through the crowd, as the Grimm slammed into Crue, creating a small cloud of dust. Almost immediately, Crue and Edgar appeared from the dust. Crue's hands were wrapped around the base of the Grimm's horns, and his feet digging into the ground.

Crue activated his Semblance, and started pushing back. The Tauro slowed down with the resistance, before eventually coming to a complete stop, straining against Crue. The Faunus's eyes flashed gold briefly, as he roared, and pulled.

With an enormous feat of strength, Crue heaved the bull over his head, and slammed it into the ground, the Tauro's horns breaking off in the process. The Wolf Faunus gave another roar, and slammed the broken horns into the beast's head.

Edgar slumped to the ground, lifeless, its own horns as the cause for its downfall. " _Probably something symbolic about that. But I don't really care right now."_ Crue let out a deep breath, and pulled Setanta from the Grimm's decaying body.

He held it aloft briefly, before swing it down, the black blood spattering the grass. He turned to where Port sat, watching over the battle. Crue raised his sword to the side, before placing his free hand against his chest, and bowing to the professor.

"Brilliant Crue!" Port cried, clapping his hands together. Crue nodded, walking over to retrieve Ruby's cloak. He gave it a quick pat down, then walked over to the wall below RWBY. He walked up the wall, and handed the clothing back to it's rightful owner, before falling over the small guardrail.

The team before him instantly righted him, sitting him down next to them. Crue's head lolled back, as he began to drift off. He immediately righted himself, and stared forward. Cinder felt herself freeze, even though she was on the opposite side of the arena.

She looked at Crue, and saw his face morph into a frown. From where she was seated, she could see the team he had become so close with begin to talk to him. The blonde one said, something, and Crue instantly rounded on her, the girl flinching back in either surprise or fear.

" _More than likely the latter."_ Cinder thought back to when she had sparred with him. The fear she felt, and then the anger at herself for feeling fear. There was just something about him, something that was strange, and terrifying.

Almost like he wasn't of this world.

Preposterous. Cinder shook her head in disbelief. Even with all she knew now thanks to Salem, there was never any mention of other worlds, aside from the quite literal Otherworld. But according to her Goddess, that was a place even she wasn't sure of it's existence. And if it did, she would be cautious in her approach.

Apparently it held a number of demons, as well as mystical creatures. Cinder recalled Salem telling her about it, but exercised the point that the risk far outweighed the reward should it be real. Cinder once considered finding this, Otherworld.

Salem had called it something else, as there were apparently several different realms within the world. One of them being _Tír na nÓg_ , a place of happiness and youth. The thought made her want to throw up. However, to get to there, one would have to go through _Tech Duinn._ Cinder tried to remember what language it was that described these realms, perhaps it could be a clue to their location.

She dispelled the thoughts from her mind, focusing back on the Faunus who caused the thoughts in the first place. Who was, in a headlock, for some reason. Cinder blinked, wondering what she had missed between Crue and this new blonde.

A tail waved behind the new blonde, Cinder realising that this new arrival was a Faunus. She wondered what the relation was- Oh, that looked like it hurt. Cinder smiled somewhat eerily, as Crue reversed the hold, and was in the process of choking out the other Faunus as he waved for help.

Her thighs rubbed together, and she glared down at her own body. Why was it acting this way? Never before had she experienced this, and she had yet to decide whether that was a good or a bad thing. She glanced back up, seeing that the situation had escalated. A newcomer with blue hair tried to grab Crue by the head, inadvertently knocking off his glasses. Crue responded by digging his elbow into the blue's ribs, causing him to double over in pain.

He released the Faunus, and Cinder could see him gasping for air. However, before he could have a moment to actually breath, Crue grabbed the blue one around the waist, and slammed him backwards, much like he had done to the Tauro beforehand.

The two new males collided with each other, the blonde from RWBY, as well as the ginger from JNPR, were egging them on, both of them eating popcorn. Cinder briefly wondered where they had acquired the snack, before seeing Crue stand on the railing that separated the students from the battlefield.

Crue jumped into the air, and came down elbow first. Cinder was unable to see the results, but heard them quite clearly, even from way over on the other side. Her desire increased dramatically upon hearing the cries of pain, gnawing at her like a starved Beowulf.

Cinder tried to ignore it, as she saw Crue rise, dusting himself off and giving a small bow to the two cheering girls. Their cheering stopped, when a tall man with dark skin and green hair stood behind Crue, the Faunus not noticing.

Crue was visibly confused, until he turned around. He had to actually crane his neck to look up at the newcomer. He made no motion, that Cinder could see, aside from cracking his knuckles together. The dark skinned man crossed his arms and leaned back, somewhat impressed.

Crue's arms went out, as he shrugged, saying something to the man, before stepping aside, and allowing the man to pick up two fallen males. Cinder realise that they must be teammates, and also briefly wondered if he and Emerald could be related.

After realising how that sounded, she quickly purged that thought. Her eyes fell back on Crue, who had bent down to pick up his glasses. Before he put them on, he turned to her. And even with the distance between them, she could easily see the steely blue eyes that belonged to him.

Her legs quivered, and she realised she needed to fix this. In a more, private location.

...

Crue watched as Cinder walked off, looking to be in a hurry. He wondered if he should follow, before realising that it would just give Yang more ammunition. With a troubled mind, he sat back down. He glanced over to where Sage was carrying Sun and Neptune back to their student dorm.

That, was completely by accident. Crue had stood up, and was going to leave after Yang continued asking questions about Cinder, and Velvet. He turned back to say something, and felt a hand wrap itself around his neck.

Granted, he may have overreacted a bit when he spun round and put the offender in a better choke hold, but he didn't know it was Sun. And, the last time someone tried to choke him out it was Cinder. So… better safe than sorry.

He was going to let up, but then Neptune showed up. And things only got worse from there. The Faunus thanked a non-existent god that he had watched enough wrestling to know some moves. Granted he knew it was fake, but some of the moves still come in use.

"Crue, you need to apologise." Weiss told him. Crue rolled his eyes behind his glasses, and shook his head.

"I told you, I don't apologise." Crue explained, having already told this to Weiss once before.

"You don't?" Ruby questioned, popper her head up. "Why not?"

"Because," Crue began. "The good kind of people in life don't look for apologies. And the bad kind will take a wrong advantage of them."

"Huh." Ruby said, surprised. "You sound like you're talking from past experience."

"Wouldn't know if I am." Crue responded, knocking his knuckles against his head. Sometimes he hated lying to Ruby, but often it was better than the truth. To make a long story short, he made a mistake. And that mistake cost him dearly.

"But I will do something to make up for it." Crue negotiated.

"What will you do?" Weiss asked. The rest of her team looked to Crue in curiosity, as Crue gained a small smirk.

…

*knock knock knock* The members of team SSSN looked to their door in vague surprise. "Anyone expecting someone?" Sage called, getting up and going to the door. The other three looked to each other with raised eyebrows.

"You again?" They heard Sages voice say in surprise. The monolith stepped back, allowing whoever knocked into the room. Sun and Neptune instantly tensed, seeing the Wolf Faunus that had rightly kicked their asses earlier enter with a smile, and with companions.

Jaune and Ren nodded to the others, standing behind Crue. "Oi! What're you doing here?" Scarlet asked, jumping up from the bed to face the Faunus.

Crue gave him a once over. "Calm down Gavin." He said, causing the pirate to look at the others in confusion. "I'm here for Sun and Neptune." The two males in question felt their blood run cold, before hearing Crue sigh.

"Damn it. Too ominous." He shook his head. "Look." He said, waving a hand at the two shivering males. "I do not apologise."

"Then why are you here?" Sun managed to find his voice, though it came out a bit higher than he would have liked.

"For a simple proposition." Crue smirked, showing pearly whites, and a slight fang. He coughed into his hand, before addressing the whole room.

"Gentlemen. Let's get hammered."

* * *

 _Whoo. 20 Chapters! *Pops party popper*_

 _Another chapter done. And with less plot, and more_ _ **plot.**_ _…Well, that was one failed innuendo. But anyway, Coco finds out about Polly. Well, the idea of Polly. She doesn't actually know who Crue dated. All of team CFVY was absent for the duration of Crue and Neo's relationship._

 _And that was totally done intentionally and not something I realised after rereading a few chapters and thought 'Hey, this could work.' Totally not that. Also, I wonder if you guys realise how much your reviews influence me._

 _A lot of you mentioned Cinder appearing to be a tsundere, so I ran with it. And MrDrago104(props to you) mentioned the idea of Crue getting_ absolutely hammered. _Too good an opportunity to miss. You guys also want him to meet with Winter, and Qrow. I sense a drinking competition in the future…_

 _Another thing. Ever hear of Chekovs Skill? Well, there was a small bit of that here. Leave a review if you find it. So, I think that's everything. If you have any questions, ask them. Any reviews, leave them. And as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	21. Care For A Pint?

Normally, a group of seven males walking down a street during the evening was a rather worrisome sight. This, however, was not the case, as the males of JNPR, along with SSSN followed Crue through Vale. More than likely due to how, colourful, they were.

"So, remind me again why we're doing this?" Jaune called after Crue, looking around at the darkening Vale.

"Because, I beat the Hell out of Sun and Neptune," A pause, where the two males in question grumbled. "And to make up for it, we drink."

"Then, why are we here?" Ren questioned.

"Cause guy's night." Crue shrugged. "Exams are over, stress is gone, what better way to celebrate than getting absolutely _hammered._ " The Faunus smirked.

"You do anything like this before?" Sage asked, standing tall over everyone else.

"Sorta." He waved his hand in a 'more or less' fashion. "I went to this one place after the Breach. Didn't get drunk, but it was a nice place." Crue informed them.

"That where we going?" Sun asked, glancing to his teammates.

"Nope." Crue shook his head. "Not the vibe I'm looking for." In reality, Crue was searching for a certain _kind_ of place. " _No matter what country, no matter what continent, no matter what world, no matter what_ dimension, _there is always an Irish Pub somewhere."_

"Vibe?" Jaune asked.

"Yeah, the place I went to is a club. I'm looking for a pub." Crue told him.

"What's the difference?" Neptune piped up. Crue let out an offended gasp, as he turned to stare at the goggle wearing boy.

"What's the difference?" He repeated, staring down Neptune. "The _difference_ is, that a club was usually obnoxious music blaring over speakers with hundreds of people trying and failing to get off with someone."

"A pub, is a calm atmosphere, with good music and good alcohol. The bartenders are nice, and you don't need to pay to get in." Finishing his explanation, Crue turned on his heel, and continued walking.

His entourage all looked at each other. "Sounds a bit biased." Scarlet commented. They watched as Crue stopped in front of a map of Vale, looking for a pub that suited his tastes. "Oi, John. What's his deal?"

"Jaune." The blonde corrected. "And, I'm not really sure." He shrugged. "He never really mentioned doing anything like this before."

"He did say it was to celebrate exams finishing." Ren commented. "We haven't had any exams with him before, perhaps that is why."

"You haven't had any exams with him before? What, was he not here for the first semester or something?" Sun chuckled lightly, before seeing the two Beacon students glancing at each other. "Oh my God he wasn't."

"He wasn't? Where was he?" Neptune asked confusedly.

"Uhm, we're not sure." Jaune told them. When the other male's eyes widened, he quickly spoke. "Uh, he just kinda, showed up one day. And he doesn't remember where he came from."

"He has amnesia." Ren stated, before SSSN could continue questioning his teammate. The expressions on their faces became conflicted, unsure as to what to feel.

"Found one!" Crue called out, snapping the students out of their daze and causing them to walk over to the map, where the Faunus had placed a finger under a name by the oceanfront.

"O'Dearg?" Sun read off in a confused tone.

Crue smiled widely. "Yeah, if it's got an 'O' in the name, it's definitely the kind of pub I'm looking for." He turned to the others, seeing their conflicted faces. "What?"

"Well, you keep going on about the place you're looking for." Neptune said. "But you said this is to make up for beating us up." He gestured to Sun. "So, shouldn't we pick?"

Crue opened his mouth, before closing it and resting a finger against his mouth. "You make a good point." He mumbled. "But, do you know anywhere in Vale you would want to get a drink at?"

"Well, there was this place that Yang brought me to when we went on that mission." The blue haired boy said, before quickly slamming his mouth closed when Jaune and Ren, as well as Sage and Scarlet turned to look at him.

"What mission?" The four said at almost the same time.

"You want to go to Juniors?" Crue asked.

"You know it?" Jaune turned to Crue, who nodded.

"Yeah, that's the place I went to after the Breach." He told them. "It's, alright." He mused. "Actually, I'm on good terms with Junior. Maybe he'll let us in for free."

"So why don't we go there?" Sage asked. Crue looked conflicted, looking back to the map to find where Juniors place was.

"Ok, ok." He waved his hands back and forth. "Pub, then club. Deal?" The members of SSSN huddled around each other briefly, discussing the question. Crue turned to Jaune and Ren, gesturing to the four males in confusion.

"How long will we be at the pub?" Sage asked, popping his head out of the huddle.

"Uh, until we got a nice buzz going." Crue decided. The huddle resumed, Crue rolling his eyes and tapping his foot impatiently. Eventually, the four stopped murmuring, and Sun stepped forward, a hand outstretched.

"Deal." He smirked. Crue smirked right back as he clapped his hand with Suns, shaking it vigorously.

"Grand. Let's go." He walked off in the direction of the pub, SSSN following him.

Jaune turned to Ren. "Why didn't we get a say in it?" He asked.

"Do you actually have something to say?" Ren questioned back. When Jaune said nothing, the two members of JNPR followed after the group of males, wondering what the night had in store.

…

"Ah, now this is more like it." Crue smiled, pushing open a set of oaken doors, the group following behind him. He half expected every head in the pub to turn and stare, seeing it as another cliché that the 'Author' would follow.

He was spared, this time, as only a few looked up from their conversations, before returning directly to them. "There's a booth over there." Crue gestured to an empty table. "First round's on me." He walked over to the bar, as the group headed to the table.

"What do you think he's getting us?" Jaune asked the group as he settled into the seat.

"Don't know. Never done anything like this before." Sun responded, the others murmuring in agreement. The Monkey Faunus briefly glanced back to the bar, seeing Crue converse with the bartender, a surprising smile on his face.

"So, he has amnesia?" He asked, turning to face Jaune and Ren. The other members of his team did the same, wanting to know more about the Faunus who they had only encountered in instances of giving their leader pain.

"He has, yes." Ren said shortly. "He woke up in the Emerald Forest, without Aura." That sentence alone was enough to make some of SSSN flinch.

"How'd he survive?" Neptune asked.

"Well, he didn't have Aura, but he sure as heck had skill." Jaune told them. "We were called in to rescue him, but turns out he didn't need rescuing." The blonde chuckled lightly. "If anything, we needed rescuing."

Seeing the confused looks on the Milstralian team, Ren explained. "Due to his high levels of adrenaline, after killing so many Grimm and managing to survive, he believed us to be threats. And so, attacked us."

Had the others actually been drinking at the moment, they more than likely would have spit some of it out in surprise. "He attacked you?!" Neptune said, in a loud whisper, glancing back over to Crue. The Faunus was still having a good chat with the bartender, but there was a steady amount of glasses on a round plate.

"Yes, but he apolo-" Jaune cut himself off, and turned to Ren. "Did he apologise?" The ninja opened his mouth, but found no sound coming out.

"I, do not believe he did." Ren responded, his magenta eyes wide. "I think he said he didn't mean to, and then I told him he was forgiven." The two students of Beacon slumped back in their seat in disbelief.

"Wow. He really knows how to work around saying sorry." Scarlet mused, taking into account that this whole night was just so he wouldn't have to say sorry.

"Right, lads." Speak of the Devil. The group turned, seeing Crue grinning broadly, carrying a small tray of drinks. He set it down on the table. "Got something nice and smooth to start off." He grabbed a glass, and gestured for the others to do the same.

"What is it?" Sage questioned, looking at the amber liquid.

"Cider. Woulda got ya Guinness but that's an acquired taste. Plus, doesn't exist here." Crue shrugged. "So, a pint of, ah shit, what he call it?" The Faunus questioned himself, turning the glass over.

"Orchard Thieves." He blinked in surprise. " _Huh. Same name."_ He shook his head briefly, before smiling once more. "So," He raised his glass slightly. "to guys night?"

Glancing at each other, the rest of the group grew faint smiles. "To guys' night." They chorused.

*clink*

…

"Man, you guys are light as Hell." Crue laughed, seeing most of the group with a red tinge. "Wasn't even that high. Just ten percent." The only ones who were not being influenced by the alcohol were Sage and Scarlet.

"We're not drunk, jeez." Sun frowned. "Just cause you've put away double what we have." Crue shrugged, sipping on his drink some more.

"Yeah, we're totally fine." Jaune said, in an only somewhat slurred voice. Crue raised an eyebrow, looking to the others. They seemed content in talking amongst themselves, so Crue paid them no mind.

The Faunus took out his scroll, checking the time. "We've got enough for another round before we head to Juniors. Who's buying?" Everyone conveniently looked away at the question, minus Ren.

Crue had discovered that Ren was the silent, sleepy drunk. He simply stared at his drink, making out shapes in the foam. "I'll get something. But it won't be cider." Crue called, walking back over to the bar.

"Wonder what he's getting." Scarlet hummed, downing the last of his drink. Beside him, Sage shrugged.

"Hey, what happened to his girlfriend?" Neptune asked Jaune and Ren. "She was pretty cute."

"They broke up." Jaune told him. Ren nodded in kind, still staring at his drink.

"So she's single." Neptune placed a hand on his chin, rubbing it smoothly. Everyone, including Ren, turned to stare at the blue haired boy. "What?"

"Do you have a death wish?" Sun asked his partner. "He already beat us up as a joke. How do you think he'd do if he had an actual reason?" Suns somewhat drunken state forgave his incorrect speech.

But it didn't forgive Neptune's idiocy.

"No way dude." Neptune waved a hand, drinking more. "He'd be cool with it. They broke up, remember. He can't say who she dates."

"He will kill you." Ren stated. "Quite literally. And quite painfully." The others all nodded, staring at Neptune. The male laughed it off, drinking from an empty glass.

"What, you think he'll be mad just cause I can treat her better?" Neptune placed a hand against his chest rather clumsily. "I am, exshmellent with the ladies."

Jaune was drumming his fingers on the table, staring at Neptune, recalling a conversation he had with the male. "What about Weiss?" He asked with surprising venom.

"Awh, yaknow, she's great. Like, really, really, really, really," Neptune went on for quite a while, as the others noticed Crue walking back with another tray. This one, however, contained seven shot glasses.

He placed the tray on the table, briefly looking at Neptune. "really, really, really," With a shrug, he turned to the others. "This," He picked up a shot. "Is a wakeup call."

"Is that its name?" Jaune asked, taking two and placing one next to Ren.

"No. I call it an Aftershock. Don't know what that guy called it." He nodded a head back to the barman. "What you do is drink it, slosh it around for a few seconds, then swallow."

The others all looked at the drink warily, minus Neptune, who was still going on. "really, really, really," Crue sighed, rolling his eyes. "Look, who here has got that weird feeling in their stomach, where they feel like they that they ate too much, but also kind of want to eat more?"

Every hand, minus Neptune, raised. "This will fix it." He said raising his own glass. The others all did the same, staring at the glass. "Fair warning." Crue spoke before moving the glass towards him. "Tastes like piss and cinnamon."

With that, the group upended the shots, following Crue's instructions and swirling it around like they would mouthwash, before swallowing. Several eyes shot open, and their owners began coughing roughly.

"So, everyone wide awake?" Crue asked with a smirk. There were nods and coughs, Ren looked as though he had just swallowed several cups of coffee in one sitting. And then there was Neptune, still going on.

Everyone turned to stare, as Sun waved a hand. "I got this." The Monkey Faunus took his shot, and waited for Neptune to open his mouth.

"really, really, rea-ghk!" Sun threw the shot in, and closed Neptune's mouth, holding his chin in one hand and the top of his head in the other. He then began to whistle as he vigorously shook Neptune's head up and down.

He stopped shaking, and the blue haired boys eyes widened, before swallowing. "Gahk! What the Hell was that?!" Neptune's dark blue eyes widened in shock, coughing roughly.

"Something to get you to shut up." Crue told him, standing slowly. "Alright, so now we go to Junior's?" The others all nodded, following after Crue as he left the booth. Only to immediately stumble against each other, almost falling.

Crue shook his head, sending them out the door, reaching into his wallet and leaving a tip. "Definitely coming back here." Crue decided, walking to the door, waving to the barman. " _Missed talking to bartenders. Always have good stories."_

Crue met the others outside, all of them wide awake with the mixture of alcohol and Vale's cool night air. "So, ready to go?" He asked, feeling a slight buzz himself.

There were nods, and the group headed in the direction of Junior's club, a few of them wobbling uncertainly. The colourful group talked amongst themselves, mostly about alcohol, and females. "Man, why is Blake so cute?"

The Monkey Faunus threw an arm around Crue, the boy stiffening upon feeling the contact. "Sun. Remember what happened last time you did that?" Sun took a few steps back, but kept a hand on his shoulder.

"You sleep with them, you've got to have some tips on how to get with them." A few others turned to look at Crue, namely Jaune and Neptune.

"You're sleeping with them?" The blue haired boy asked, eyes wide.

"Yeah, and you sure as hell aren't going to." Crue growled in warning. Unfortunately, Neptune's interpretation of 'sleeping' was different to Crue's meaning of the word. "And I don't know why you looked over." He turned to Jaune.

Jaune paled slightly, mouth opening and closing uselessly. "I thought you were over Weiss? Don't you realise you have someone who will definitely say yes to you."

"I do?" Jaune asked.

"Yes! Jesus Christ, Fox is less blind than you are!" Crue exclaimed. "Have you ever considered, that maybe you have a better chance within your own team?"

Crue waited for a reply, but didn't get one. He turned around, seeing that the group had suddenly disappeared. "What the Hell?"

The group, unseen by Crue, had hidden in an alley close by, having seen something rather worrying. "He's heading right toward them!" Neptune hissed, seeing Crue approach the club entrance, that had two White Fang guards stationed outside.

"Why are there White Fang there?!" Sun questioned, already having gone against them before, and not looking forward to a repeat.

"Forget that, we need to help Crue!" Jaune turned to the group. "Has anyone got their weapons?" Each male gave themselves a quick pat down, but came up with nothing. "Nothing?"

"We came out to drink. Why would we bring weapons?" Scarlet complained.

"We have to help somehow." Sage stated, looking to the ground, and seeing a discarded pipe. He picked it up and twirled it experimentally. "Let's-" * _CRACK*_ A loud sound interrupted Sages words, as the group peered around the corner of the alley, seeing Crue entering the club, the White Fang guards unconscious.

"What… just happened?"

…

"What the Hell?" Crue wondered, scratching the back of his head. With a shrug, he turned around, heading to Juniors club, planning on having some more of that Beowulf Whiskey. And maybe talking to the twins.

He had been meaning to talk to Miltia about her claws. He needed a hand in training, and she was the only one who he knew that used claws and also knew he had his ow-"Sorry, no entry."

Crue blinked out of his thought process, actually looking at what lay before him. "What?" Crue asked, looking the people who stopped him up and down.

"Our leader is talking to the person who owns this place. It will soon be a new base of operations for us. You should consider joining." The man in the White Fang uniform smirked, hoisting his gun slightly.

"Leader?" Crue said quietly, thinking of Adam Taurus. However, before he thought about that, there was an even more pressing matter to attend to. "So, you won't let me in?" The Faunus said slowly, taking off his glasses and folding them, hanging them on his waistcoat pocket.

"Correct." The grunt nodded, his companion gripping his rifle a bit tighter, sensing something oddly familiar about this Faunus.

"That means, you're standing in the way of me an alcohol?" Crue asked again, looking at both White Fang members, managing to stare through their masks to meet their eyes.

"Uh, correct?" The terrorist nodded. Crue smiled at them, and placed a hand on a shoulder of both White Fang members, the two Faunus stiffening under the contact.

"That, is a very bad idea." With only a Crue's eyes briefly flashing dark gold as warning, he gripped the two by the sides of their heads and smacked them against each other.

* _CRACK*_

The two guards slumped to the floor, one lying over the other. Crue dusted off his hands, walking into the club while whistling a small tune. Inside the club, there was a small standoff between Junior and his men, as well as Melanie and Miltia, and the White Fang.

They were waiting for something to set off the fight, some kind of go ahead to begin the brawl. They heard something, but it wasn't a sound to start a fight. If anything, it ended the fight before it began.

"Guess who's back~!" The doors slammed open, and Crue stood there, crossing his arms and smirking at the sight before him. Unfortunately, there was no Adam Taurus. There was, however, a certain Goat Faunus that shivered upon hearing the entrance.

"Again? Really?" Crue called, walking down the steps to the club. "Shame on you. Terrorists should never attack the same place twice." He walked towards the White Fang, the group parting out of fear before him, giving him a direct line towards Junior.

"Kid. Man, am I glad to see you." The bearded man smiled. Crue smiled back, stepping closer to the man.

"Glad to help. You really need to send me a text whenever something like this happens." He came to a stop before the club owner, looking up ever so slightly. "Melanie, Milita, good to see you." He peered round the man, nodding to the twins.

"Hi Crue." Miltia waved, her claws shining in the club light. Melanie gave a hum of acknowledgement.

"Now." Crue turned on his heel, facing the White Fang once more, the terrorist freezing upon seeing his steely blue eyes. "If we're gonna fight, I feel that you should know, there's six hunters in training waiting outside." The Faunus said, idly looking at his fingernails.

The terrorists stepped back, before their leader took a step forward. "We're not backing down this time!" He announced, his resolve apparently giving the White Fang a second spine. "You don't have any of your weapons on you!"

Crue's smile turned deadly, as his eyes narrowed at the Goat Faunus. "That's what you think." He took out his scroll momentarily, and the terrorist group froze, knowing he could call in a locker. "HEY! BRUNO!"

At the back of the club, a man in a bear head stood up from behind the DJ's booth, looking for who called him. "PLAY THIS WOULDYA!?" Crue hurled his scroll towards the DJ, who caught it with a slight fumble.

He gave the name of the song a quick glance, before plugging the scroll into his station. Crue turned back to the White Fang, and raised his hands up. "What was that you said about not having weapons?"

* _SNKT*_ The Goat Faunus took a step back, seeing claws shoot out from Crue's hands. "Are you ready Junior?" He asked the club owner.

"Uh huh." The man chuckled, stepping next to the Faunus, holding a large red baseball bat.

"Melanie?"

"Yeah." The twin clad in white stepped forward beside Junior, her bladed heels sparking across the floor.

Miltia?"

"Ok." The clawed girl stepped next to Crue, smiling at him as she raised her own claws. Behind her, Junior's men lined up, holding red axes and swords. Crue chuckled, as he took his glasses and placed them back on his face.

" **Alright fellas,"**

 **[Ballroom Blitz - Sweet]**

" **LET'S GO!"**

The battle began instantly, with Crue slamming a claw down onto the Goat Faunus. The group leader only managed to bring up his cutlass at the last second, sparks flying between the blades.

Crue kicked out while the blades were connected, sending the Goat Faunus back. All around him, White Fang were attacking and getting attacked. The Wolf Faunus looked down to the fallen White Fang before him.

He shrugged, before running over him, slamming a foot down into his stomach for good measure. He jumped off the Goat, and leaped in the air, slamming his claws down. He create a small shockwave, sending White Fang members stumbling.

The terrorists loss of balance made them easy pickings for Junior's henchmen. Crue back stepped, leaving the mooks to the mooks. As he reversed, he felt his body press against someone else. They were a lot smaller than him, he noticed.

"Miltia?" He tried, slashing at an incoming White Fang.

"First try. Not bad." He heard the girl chuckle. "Why do we always meet under these circumstances?" She sighed in a joking manner, slashing away at White Fang on her own side.

"Because I'm the embodiment of bad luck?" Crue laughed, slicing his claws through the air, sending arcs of blue energy at the terrorists. " _Forgot I could do that. I should try that with Setanta some time."_

"Oh, by the way. Can you help me train with these?" He called over his shoulder, seeing the girls red dress that appeared to be made of newspaper.

"You need training?" Miltia said in surprise. "Doesn't look like it." She stated, seeing Crue send three Faunus flying backwards.

"Hey," Crue waved. "can never be too careful." He smirked back at her, before feeling a pain in the back of his head. "MOTHERFUCKER!" Crue exclaimed, his glasses falling, turning back and punching the White Fang that had hit him in the shoulder.

He forgot momentarily that there were claws at the end of his fist, and heard the Faunus cry out in pain as the steel claws went through his Aura. Blue eyes widened, as he retracted his claws. The White Fang fell to the ground, clutching his shoulder.

Looking around him, Crue saw that every member of the terrorist group was on the ground. There were also a few of Junior's men on the ground, the bar owner apparently noticing this. "Who's not dead? Sound off."

Several groans came from his men, as well as some of the White Fang. "Where's the Lieutenant?" Crue turned to see the Goat Faunus leader trying to stand. "We borrowed him specifically for this operation."

As if his words were a cue, the doors to the club opened, and there stood a much bigger, meaner looking White Fang member. But… he wasn't moving. The Lieutenant began to fall forward, revealing what was behind him.

SSSN, Jaune and Ren stood in the entrance of the club, all of them holding various pieces of pipe or metal. When they saw the state the club was in, they lowered their weapons. "Aw, we missed the fight." Sun complained.

* _SNKT*_ Crue quickly sheathed his claws once he saw the others. He waved them over. "Yo! Get your asses over here." He turned back to see Junior looking at him and the others oddly.

"Was planning on coming here to drink. Brought these guys along." He gestured a thumb behind him. "But, some idiots decided not let that happen." Crue looked down at the unconscious White Fang members.

"What are you going to do with these guys?" Jaune asked, stepping carefully over the White Fang.

"Toss them back out maybe." Junior hummed, a hand going to his beard. "Tie them together and put a note on them or something." He shrugged, before snapping his fingers, instructing his men to start picking up the terrorists.

They went about their job quickly, Junior leading the huntsman over to the bar. "So, what'll it be?" Every head turned to Crue, who smiled.

"Something strong. We're getting hammered tonight." He smirked. Junior nodded, reaching under the bar and producing seven shot glasses. Crue smiled, before turning around. "Hey, M 'n M." Melanie and Miltia turned to the Faunus with a raised eyebrow.

"Wanna join?" He gestured to the bar. The two girls looked to their boss for the answer.

"You fought off White Fang. I think you've earned it." Junior smiled, taking out two more. The twins smiled, walking over to the bar and taking seats next to Crue, closest to Junior. The bear of a man turned around, glancing over his many drinks, before picking two tall bottles and uncapping them.

With practised grace, he filled each glass with a mixture of the two liquids. Crue grabbed his and raised it. "To kicking terrorist ass!" He toasted.

"Cheers!" The others chorused, and they all drank. Crue, Melanie and Miltia all smiled, turning the shot glass upside down and placing it on the counter. The others were not as lucky. Suns tail was completely straight, as he froze in place, the shot glass still in his hand.

Jaune, Scarlet and Sage were all coughing roughly, beating on their chests. Ren's head hit the counter the moment he swallowed, and Neptune had fallen off his stool. Crue laughed at the blue haired man's plight.

"What was in that? Tasted pretty good." Crue questioned Junior. The barman raised an eyebrow at the fact Crue was not currently on the floor and singing in tongues.

"It's called the Great Alliance. Atlesian Vodka and Mistralian Rum." Junior informed him, showing him the bottles he had used. Crue nodded, taking a look at the rum.

"Can I have a shot of that? Always liked rum." Crue hummed, lightly flicking the bottle.

"Us too." Miltia requested Junior. Melanie shook her head.

"No way, Miltia. I hate rum." The girl clad in white shuddered. "I'll have some of the vodka." Junior nodded, getting another three glasses. All the while, the others were slowly recovering from the Alliance shot.

"Ugh. I feel like I was just tasered." Sun complained, before looking down at his shorts. "Didn't soil myself. Good to know." He turned, seeing Crue swallow another shot after clinking it with the two girls.

"Dude, what are you?" He asked his fellow Faunus, having already seen him put away twelve pints of cider, an aftershock shot, and that Alliance shot.

Crue smirked at him when he set the shot glass down. "I'm Irish." He raised a finger high in the air. "Another!"

...

" _~What will we do with the drunken sailor? What will we do with the drunken sailor? What will we do with the drunken sailor? Early in the morning!~"_ Crue sang, standing atop the counter and clapping his hands to the beat, several of Junior's men clapping along drunkenly.

Junior himself watched amusedly, nodding his head to the beat of the song, wondering where he had heard something similar before. Around him, he could see the effects of the alcohol on those that weren't used to it.

The Monkey Faunus had ditched his shirt completely, and was now licking one of his men's badges. The one with blue hair was lying on the floor, rolling around occasionally, with the blonde one laughing and recording him with his scroll.

The only one that seemed to be doing fine was the big green haired guy, who simply sat at the bar, drinking a pint of… something. He couldn't actually remember what he ordered. As a bartender, that probably wasn't a good thing.

And then, there was the other two. "Ren." The redhead said, grabbing the ninja by his shoulder and spinning him on the stool to face him. "I'm not into dudes, but if I had a boner for you, it's really trying right now."

Scarlet twitched his index finger, symbolising his point. Ren said something incomprehensible, and Scarlet nodded in kind. "I know. People do like grapes."

With a roll of his eyes, Junior turned back to Crue, who had managed to get the twins up on the counter with him, both of them singing along. Junior wondered how drunk Melanie must be to let something like that happen.

" _~Stick him in bed wit the captain's daughter! Stick him in bed wit the captain's daughter! Stick him in bed wit the captain's daughter! Early in the morning!"_ They clapped their hands and stomped their feet in tune.

Junior noticed Melanie's boots beginning to chip the counter. He was going to have take that out of her pay. "Hey! Junior!" He heard his name being called, and turned to see Crue had jumped behind the counter to get closer, the others continuing the song.

"Do you have, whoah." He stumbled slightly, before righting himself. "Do you have a guitar? I want to show these guys how to rock." The Faunus made a motion of playing a guitar.

Junior chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, it's in the back." He gestured to a door that was close to the end of the bar.

"Greand!" Crue smiled, slipping between 'Great' and 'Grand'. He ran to the storage room, and searched for the guitar. "Why can't I see?" Crue wondered, scratching his head. He felt metal when he ran his hands over his ear, and remembered.

"Oh yeah. Glasses. Duh." He took of the shades and placed them in his pocket. "There we go." He spied a red fender, and grabbed it immediately, running out of the room. "I got the, hrk, thing!" He burped halfway through the sentence, covering his mouth.

The others cheered drunkenly, watching as Crue made his way up to the DJ table, lightly pushing Bruno out of the way. "C'mon. C'mon. I'll be fine." He reassured, flicking his scroll that was still in the booth.

He started to strum as Bruno plugged the extension lead in. "This is for you Jauney!" He cried out drunkenly, as he moved a hand **down.**

 **[Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye - Dropkick Murphys]**

"~ _When on the road to sweet Athy, Hurroo, Hurroo. When on the road to sweet Athy, Hurroo, Hurroo. When on the road to sweet Athy. A stick in the hand, a drop in the eye, a doleful damsel I heard cry.~"_

Crue raised his hand high into the air. " _~Jauney I hardly knew ya~"_ He began playing the guitar vigorously, shredding it in time with the rest of the music. Those sober enough to enjoy the music danced along, fist pumping the air.

" _~Where are the eyes that looked so mild? Hurroo, Hurroo. Where are the eyes that looked so mild? Hurroo, Hurroo._ _Where are the eyes that looked so mild? When my poor heart you first beguiled, why did ya run from me and the child, Jauney I hardly knew ya!~"_

" _~We had guns and drums and drums and guns, Hurroo, Hurroo.~"_ The crowd began singing along, chanting the chorus. _"~We had guns and drums and drums and guns, Hurroo, Hurroo. We had guns and drums and drums and guns, the enemy never slew ya!~"_

Crue took a quick breath for pause, but continued to play the guitar. "~ _Jauney I hardly knew ya!~"_ Crue watched as the crowd jumped and danced, his eyes falling to the group he came here with, as well as the two twins, wondering what the night had in store for them.

...

" _~JAUNEY I HARDLY KNEW YA!~"_ Crue began to slow down on his guitar, plucking it softly as the crowd died down. " _~I'm happy for, to see you home, Hurroo, Hurroo. I'm happy for, to see you home, Hurroo, Hurroo. I'm happy for, to see you home, from the isle of Ceylon.~"_

He came to an almost complete stop, before slowly ramping up in speed, a smile growing on his face as the crowd's excitement rose once more. " _~JAUNEY I HARDLY KNEW YA!~"_

" _~We had guns and drums and drums and guns, Hurroo,~"_ He jabbed a finger to the crowd, as they exclaimed 'HEY!'. " _~Hurroo, HEY! We had guns and drums and drums and guns, Hurroo, HEY! Huroo, HEY!"_

 _~We had guns and drums and drums and guns, the enemy never slew ya!~"_ He put more power on the guitar, building up the music. "JAUNEY I HARDLY KNEW YA!" The entire crowd joined in, Crue holding his hand high after a final powerful strum.

He fell backwards, being stopped from falling onto his rear thanks to Bruno. "Thanks man." He rubbed the bear head affectionately. Bruno nodded in understanding, holding out a bottle of something to Crue.

The Faunus inspected the bottle. There was a smiling man with a great white beard and sailor hat pictured on the bottle. "Captain Carey." He read the label, before shrugging, and beginning to chug the liquid. The rum burned the back of his throat pleasantly, and he stopped drinking with a satisfied breath.

Before he could turn to Bruno to thank him, he heard the sound of the doors opening roughly. The music stopped and every head turned to see several guards walk in, along with a tall, dark, grizzly hunter that seemed oddly familiar to Crue.

"We heard there was White Fang! Nobody move!" One of the officers demanded. Crue, with his infinite wisdom, combined with his drunken state, could only think to do one thing.

He hopped over the DJ table, sitting on the railing and grabbing the microphone that was part of the set up. "Good evening Officers!" He waved, every head looking to him in surprise. He held up the bottle of rum.

"Care for a pint?"

* * *

 _Of course Crue, in a situation where he could most likely be either arrested or attacked, would offer a drink. Wonder how that will turn out. And who is this new hunter? Hmmm. What hunter could go to a place that serves alcohol this late at night? I wonder._

 _So, not much plot wise really happened this chapter. But, Crue got hammered. And isn't that the most important thing?_

 _Totally. The important question is this. Will the next chapter start off with a hangover and the consequences, or continue from where we left off?_

 _Oh, and here is a little list of Irish that I've used, and how to pronounce it.  
Tóg go bog é: Towg guh bog eyy. (Yeah, Irish is weird like that.)  
Tír na nÓg: Tear(as in crying) nah no-guh  
Tech Duínn: Tek Doon_

 _That's all I can think of right now. Anything else, let me know. So, hope you enjoyed. If you have any questions, don't be afraid to ask. If you have any comments, don't be afraid to leave them. And as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	22. Wolf And Crow

" _I… don't remember falling asleep…"_ Crue thought, his eyes opening slowly, his eyes adjusting to the sight before him. " _That's not the club…"_ He also realised that his head was on something very soft, and there was warmth on both sides of him.

He craned his neck up, and froze. For some reason, he was naked. And so were the two girls clinging to his arm. " _Don't scream. Don't scream."_ Miltia and Melanie both looked to be sleeping peacefully, Crue's arms lying between their breasts.

" _I can't move without waking them."_ The Faunus realised. " _Fuck. What do I do? Did we have sex? Are we just naked in bed for some reason? Were we all drunk?"_ He felt movement, and looked to his side, seeing Miltia stirring. He waited silently, as the girls green eyes blinked open.

"Uh…" Crue droned out as their eyes met. Miltia's eyes showed confusion and brief fear, before they widened. Miltia glanced down, seeing her naked body pressed up against Crue's.

Her face turned red, as she looked back up to meet Crue's eyes. "Did, did we…" She stuttered out.

"I, don't know." Crue replied honestly. "I can't remember anything from last night." His splitting headache proved how true that was. The two heard a groan, and looked to their right.

"Ugh. Who's talking so loud?" Melanie groaned, sitting up in the bed. She rubbed her eyes and turned, freezing as she saw her sister and Crue, both naked. She glanced down, seeing that she was also naked.

"What. Happened." She said icily. The two claw users gulped and leaned back slightly.

"We, don't know." Miltia said slowly, trying to calm her twin down. "We were all drinking a lot last night. We can't blame anyone individually."

Crue nodded in kind, before freezing under Melanie's glare. "Well, we don't know if we had sex or not, so, maybe nothing happened."

"So you're saying that we all just got into bed with each other, naked, for no reason?" Melanie said sarcastically.

"Well, he was pretty comfy." Miltia muttered. "That might be why." Both her sister and Crue turned to her with raised eyebrows. "What? We get clingy when we're drunk."

"I do not!" Melanie said in a high pitched voice. She turned on her rear, her legs going over the bed and standing up. Crue instantly turned his head upward, staring at the ceiling. "I just found out something."

Crue glanced down, before staring back up immediately. "What did you find out?" He asked. Miltia peered around Crue to look at her sisters back, wondering the same.

"We had sex." Melanie spoke, her voice wavering.

"We did?!" Miltia and Crue exclaimed at the same time. "How do you know?" Melanie bent over, forcing Crue to stare upward again.

"Because, I stepped on this." Melanie turned around, showing them what she had found. Crue looked down, and felt both relieved and terrified. Melanie was holding an obviously used condom, which on one hand meant that they had safe sex, but they still had sex.

"So, are you going to kill me now or wait until my back is turned?" Crue asked.

"We're not going to kill you Crue." Miltia told him.

"We're not?" Melanie asked her sister. The other twin frowned at her, and Melanie amended her statement. "I mean we're definitely not going to kill you." Crue let out a sigh of relief. "Junior probably will."

"That, makes a lot of sense." The Faunus couldn't even bring himself to argue, instead flopping back down on the bed that he woke up in. "Where are we by the way?"

"Our room." The twins said at the same time. "We're above the club." Miltia informed the Faunus, who nodded, rubbing his temple with his fingers.

"So, we got drunk, had sex, and fell asleep together?" Crue questioned, before freezing. He looked at both his hands, fingers spread wide. "Oh thank God." " _No rings."_

"What's wrong? Thought you lost your hands or something?" Melanie asked, looking down at her own bare hands.

"No, more like worried we accidentally married each other or something." Crue explained, glancing at Miltia's hands. The twin usually in red looked down at her own hands, lacking any jewellery.

"Why would you worry that?" She asked.

"Because, I'm the living embodiment of bad luck." " _And you love your fucking clichés."_ Crue explained. "We should probably get dressed." He said, moving to the edge of the bed and standing.

"Woah." The twins said at the same time, Crue turning around to face them in confusion. "I suddenly feel a lot less annoyed about sleeping with you." Melanie said, eyes downward.

Crue glanced down, and felt heat rise in his cheeks as he placed his hands over his crotch. He also realised that the two women before him were also naked, and found himself pushing down harder. "You two should get dressed too."

This caused the girls to look down also, and become as red as Miltias dress. Curiously, they twins covered opposite body parts, as well as their sisters.

"Let's, forget this happened?" Crue attempted. The two sisters looked at each other.

"Well, we aren't exactly looking for a boyfriend right now." Melanie turned back to Crue. "So, this is just a one night stand if anything. Miltia?"

"I feel the same." She said, meeting Crue's eyes. "Sorry Crue. You're a nice guy. And I like you, but just, not now." Miltia shrugged. Crue's eyes widened, but nodded.

"Same here actually. I only got out of one a while ago." He rubbed his shoulder. "Guess this is like a turning point or something."

"You were dating someone?" Melanie asked in surprise.

"Who?" Miltia wondered.

"Neo." Crue replied, before slapping his hands against his mouth. The twins eyes widened as they opened their mouths in shock.

"Y-you were dating-" "No!" Crue cut off Melanie. "Well yes! But no! It's confusing, ok?!" He waved his hands back and forth trying to calm the twins down. "Just calm the Hell down!"

Aside from the heavy breathing, the two girls managed to keep themselves composed. "I'll explain everything, after we get dressed."

…

"So, you dated Neo, but you didn't date Neo?" Melanie tried to put together everything Crue had told her and her sister. The three were now fully clothed, and had sat down on the bed, a girl on either side of Crue.

For some reason the Faunus could not find his tie.

"Yes." Crue nodded. "But, no." He sighed, putting his head into his hands. "I dated Neo, but I was also dating her in disguise, when her name was Polly."

"Did she know? Did you know?" Melanie interrogated.

"No." Crue said sarcastically. "I was dating a sadistic, psychopathic criminal without any foreknowledge." He crossed his arms and stared at the girl in white. Melanie had the decency to look somewhat embarrassed by the question.

"Right. But, why can't we tell anyone else you know?" She asked.

"Because I'm not supposed to know." Crue frowned, staring at the ground. "And if Cinder finds out I know, I'm basically dead." " _Not that I'd actually die. I'd tell Ozpin before she gets the chance."_

"How do you know?" Miltia asked quietly. Crue clasped his hands together, seated on the bed and staring at the ground.

"I can't tell you." He said slowly. "I doubt you'd believe me anyway." The girls glanced at each other behind Crue, wondering what he meant.

"We should go down." Melanie finally said, standing up, her bladed heels clicking against the floor. "See what the damages are."

The other two followed after her, exiting the room. Crue blinked, wondering where his glasses had gone, as they hadn't been in the room. He followed the twins down a hall, watching their steps fall in line with each other.

The Faunus followed them to a red double door, which they both opened at the same time. All three winced, seeing the aftermath of the night of drinking. All of the round booths had been used as makeshift beds, with almost every one filled. Some of the members of the police could be seen littered around the club, all of them unconscious.

Crue could easily locate his friends, seeing as they weren't wearing black suits and red ties. Two heads of blonde were pushed against each other, Sun and Jaune lying against each other in a booth.

Sage, Scarlet and Neptune had a booth to themselves, Sage laying down on the leather seat and the other two laying on him. It was to the Faunus' surprise, that he saw Ren sitting at the bar, apparently wide awake.

Crue walked down the steps, aiming for the ninja, while the twins walked in the other direction, heading to Junior's office to see if he was awake. Crue sat down on the stool next to Ren, seeing him staring forward, apparently not noticing his arrival.

"Ren?" Crue asked, seeing the boys hands clasped around a glass that held some form of green liquid.

"Crue?" Magenta eyes blinked, as Ren turned to face the Faunus. "How long have you been there?"

"Just got here. How long have you been awake?" Crue asked.

"I'm not sure. An hour, I believe." Ren frowned lightly, looking down at his drink and taking a sip. "I woke up spooning Jaune, so I extracted myself as quickly as I could." At his words, the two males looked back to the mess of blonde hair.

"Looks like he's cuddling Sun now. Pyrrha will be jealous." Crue chuckled, before wincing slightly and rubbing his temples. "Don't suppose you've seen my glasses have you?"

"I believe the man at the end of the table is wearing them. If I recall correctly, you got along quite well with him." Ren explained, pointing to the end of the bar. Crue nodded, and stood up, staggering slightly.

He walked to the end of the bar, lightly rubbing the stools as he passed. He could see the man at the end of the bar, and felt as though he should recognise him. He wore a tattered cape, black shoes and trousers, and a grey dress shirt.

He was also passed out face down on the bar. Crue grabbed the man's shoulder and lifted it, peeling his face from the surface of the bar. He saw himself reflected in his glasses, and made to take them off, lightly brushing against the man's stubble.

He lifted his glasses from the man's face, and felt himself blinking, as he looked into piercing red eyes. For a moment, neither man said anything.

"Qrow?" "Crue?" The two said at the same time, meeting each other's eyes. Qrow's eyes widened in what appeared to be glee, as he stood from his stool, and throwing his arms wide.

"Eeyy! There's my new drinking buddy!" He stumbled, throwing an arm around Crue and bringing him into a rather awkward headlock. "How've you been? I saw you go up last night with those two ladies. Twins, huh? Nice job."

"It went pretty damn well." Crue responded, smirking as he escaped from the headlock, and put Crue in a similar one. "What about you? You get any, or did you just stay here drinking all night." " _I'm assuming we got along pretty well last night. Otherwise this wouldn't be happening. Might as well go along."_

"Don't disrespect your elders, kid." Qrow warned, smirking as he released himself from the headlock. "It's thanks to me your ass isn't in jail right now."

"The Hell are you on about?" Crue asked, feeling a sudden weightlessness in his arms. He realised that he did not have his claws on his person, and feared that Qrow had found them.

"I took you up on your offer." The huntsman smiled. "You offered the officers a drink, and I accepted. Guess that cause they saw a huntsman agreeing, they thought it was alright to." At that, the two males turned around, seeing the few Vale police officers littered around the club.

"Fair enough. Guess I owe you one. Although, probably bought you more than one yesterday." Crue smirked, leaning against the bar and placing his glasses on his head.

"Yeah, you did. You're a damn good drinking partner." Qrow chuckled, lightly punching the Faunus' shoulder. To his surprise, the male winced, rubbing the part where he hit.

"Why's it always that shoulder?" Crue complained. "Ugh, never mind." He waved off Qrows surprised look. "So, what are you doing here? You probably told me last night, but I can't remember shit."

"Eh, not gonna blame ya. That's probably my fault anyway. We got into a drinking contest." Qrow explained with a smirk.

"And I won." Crue nodded sagely.

"The Hell you did!" Qrow looked at the younger man, offended. "How do you know you won if you don't even remember?"

"Because, and listen carefully." He gestured for Qrow to come closer. "No one out drinks an Irishman."

"I… don't know what that means." Qrow said slowly. "Is it a metaphor or something?"

"Sure." Crue shrugged. "Not like I can remember. But, anyway, why're you here?"

"Eh, friend of mine called me in. I need to show a few whippersnappers a thing or two." Qrow explained with a smirk.

"Whippersnappers? Fuck, you're old." Crue laughed, before feeling Qrow hit his shoulder once more. "Sonofa- Why that one?!"

"Cause now I know it's your weak spot." Qrow stood from the stool, scraping it back. "Try not to let people in on your weaknesses, kid."

"Don't talk to me about weaknesses, I could say shit that would have you back here night after night." Crue chuckled, walking to the door of the club. The elder hunter looked at the Faunus as they both exited.

"Like what?" Qrow dared playfully. Crue shook his head, a small smile on his face.

"You think I'm dumb enough to piss you off? Nah, I may want to die but I'm not _that_ suicidal." The crisp morning air of Vale did wonders for both alcoholics, helping them awaken completely. "Hope that the others wake up ok."

"Are they used to drinking?" Qrow asked, as they walked down the streets of Vale, early morning traffic already making itself known.

"The guys I was with? Not really. I just hope I got good pictures of the night. Speaking of…" Crue reached into his pocket, taking out his scroll and unlocking it. "Let's see what we got."

He checked his messages first. "Ok, no awkward 'Come back to me' texts to exes." Qrow snorted from beside him. "I did send a message to, Vic." He looked back up for a moment. "I don't know a Vic."

"Text 'im, see what happens." Qrow suggested. Crue nodded in kind, composing a short question. He hit send, and almost instantly heard a noise like a bird cry. Qrow took out his own scroll, and looked at it. "I'm Vic?"

"Apparently." Crue said in disbelief. "What do you have me down as?" Qrow looked back to his scroll, and smirked.

"CKUWM." Qrow read out. "It's my own personal acronym. Stands for: 'Can Keep Up With Me'." The explanation made Crue smile, as he briefly wondered something.

"What did I send to you before?" He asked. Qrow looked down at his scroll, reading the previous message.

"You wanted me to say something." Qrow told him, before reading out the request. "Fullmetal Alchemist."

Crue broke into laughter beside the older huntsman, who looked at him in confusion. "Inside joke. Don't suppose you know any alchemy do you?"

"No… Why the Hell would I know alchemy?" The grizzled hunter asked.

"No reason. Just curious." Crue went back to his scroll. "Now, let's see what drunken pictures I took." He opened his gallery, as Qrow peered down at the device.

"Holy…" Qrow breathed out. "Those twins sure were something. Matching lingerie and everything." He elbowed Crue with a smirk. "Lucky bastard."

Crue just nodded, trying to purge the image from his mind. He quickly swiped, only to see the next image and instantly recoil, Qrow doing the same. "Why is that there!?" The hunter asked.

"I don't know. I don't even think it's mine!" Crue answered, deleting the picture of someone else's junk. "Well, that's an interesting development." The Faunus said slowly, looking at the picture of Jaune and Ren kissing, with the others celebrating in the background, and a bottle pointing at Ren.

"Ah, spin the bottle. I remember those days." Qrow hummed, rubbing his stubbly chin in remembrance. Crue swiped to the next picture, and saw it was a video. He hit play, and Qrow leaned in to see.

" _Are you ready?"_ Came Junior's voice, the video centred on him and Scarlet. Scarlet nodded. " _Ok, what I'm going to do is-_ " Junior didn't finished the sentence, smacking the redhead across his cheek with the palm of his hand.

"Yooo!" Crue covered his mouth in shock, while Qrow started laughing. "Oh! It was slap or kiss." The Faunus realised.

"Slap or what?" Qrow asked, holding his side from laughing too much.

"Slap or Kiss. It's like spin the bottle, but whoever spins it has to either slap or kiss who it lands on. The other people playing vote." He looked back at the video, which showed Scarlet sprawled out on the ground. "Guess Scarlet got Slap."

"Man, wish I knew that back in my day. Could've slapped the blue right out that bastards eyes." Qrow said with a chuckle. Crue looked up from the scroll with a sudden thought.

"Qrow."

"Hm?"

"Do the words, 'Entire Team' mean anything to you?" The Faunus asked, and instantly regretted it, seeing Qrow's face morph into a scowl.

"No. Not a thing." He answered, reaching inside his shirt and grabbing a flask. He opened it and made to drink, but found it dry. He lowered the flask in disappointment. "Not a thing."

"Hey, c'mon." Crue patted the older mans back. "We'll get it filled up at a decent pub." He smiled, seeing Qrow raise an eyebrow. "And I know just the place."

…

"Ah, you're back." Mr. O'Dearg smiled, seeing Crue walk back in. "And you've only brought one fella this time." The bartender was an older man, missing most of his hair aside from a thick white beard.

"Just here for a refill." Qrow told the man, taking a seat at the bar, Crue doing the same.

"And a hangover cure." Crue chuckled. Qrow chuckled too, nodding to Crue.

"Yeah, that too." Qrow placed his flask on the counter, and let out a relaxed sigh. "Like this place. Got a nice vibe."

"Yeah, my thoughts exactly." Crue chuckled. "There's actually a place by the waterfront I think you might like." The Faunus told him.

"Really? What's it called?" Qrow asked.

Crue grew a smirk, one that Qrow recognised all too well. The kind of smirk someone grew when they were about to say a terrible pun. "The Crowbar."

Qrow let out a noise halfway between a groan and a chuckle. "Thought I heard the last of these when I left Patch. What is it with blonde and puns?"

"Eh," Crue shrugged. "It's a coping mechanism."

"A shame that sounds believable." Qrow grumbled, sitting back up and hearing the clinking of glasses. He looked before him, and saw an odd concoction that appeared to be in a mojito glass. "The Hell is this?"

"A cure. Like you wanted." O'Dearg answered. "I'd tell you what's in it, but I think you'd not want it then."

The two males looked at each other, before shrugging, and downing the drink. Almost instantly, their faces turned green and they began to grab at their throats. Qrow began coughing roughly, and Crue slid backwards off the stool.

"What's in that?!" Qrow managed to cough out. O'Dearg shook his head with a smile.

"Raw egg, coffee, asparagus…" The bartender went on, Qrow's eyes widening with every horrible ingredient. He felt his stomach heave, but forced it down.

"I'm gonna need some whiskey to wash down that 'cure'." The hunter said slowly.

"Someone said whiskey?" Crue was instantly back on his feet, looking around. Qrow laughed loudly.

"Wow, you're something kid." The grizzled huntsman complimented. Crue nodded in thanks, sitting back at the counter.

"Actually, I think some rum'd be nice." Crue hummed, leaning an elbow on the bar.

"Why rum?" Qrow asked, wondering about the specifics of the request.

"Because, the great thing about rum is that," Crue pointed to the clock, where it showed it was ten am. "Drinking rum before twelve doesn't make you an alcoholic. It makes you a pirate." He smirked, finishing his explanation.

"Heh." Qrow chuckled. "I'll drink to that."

…

"Looks like the others got back safe." Crue read from his scroll, pocketing it and stretching his arms high. Next to him, Qrow glanced at his own scroll.

"Ah, I'm late." He groaned, standing from the stool. "Nice meeting you." He nodded to O'Dearg, who smiled kindly. "And as for you…" He clapped Crue on the back, on the opposite shoulder. The Faunus looked up to the huntsman with a raised eyebrow.

"I'll be calling you up for another drink." He smirked. Crue grinned back, nodding enthusiastically.

"And then I can prove to you that I'm the better drinker." The Wolf Faunus smirked, showing teeth. Qrow 'hmpf'd in amusement, patting the boys back, maybe going a little bit harder on a certain shoulder.

"You're cocky, kid. I like that." The hunter smiled, before exiting the pub, waving goodbye to the bartender and Crue.

Crue turned back to the bartender and briefly wondered something. "Hey." O'Dearg looked up to the Faunus with a quirked eyebrow. "You wouldn't happen to know where to get a hip flask would you?"

…

"What was Qrow doing there?" Crue wondered, walking to the bullhead docks. "He said something about Ozpin… Well, not directly." The Faunus scratched his chin, feeling a small bit of stubble growing.

"Need to shave." He mused. " _Also, what was that with the twins? Was that you? The fuck dude…"_ Crue shook his head, grabbing at his neck with his hand, moving downward. "And where's my tie?"

With a sigh, Crue walked onto the bullhead, taking a seat next to a window. " _Ooh, Jaune had to get on this to get back to Beacon… that ain't a pretty idea."_ He leaned his head against the back of the bullhead and rested his eyes.

*peck peck peck*

Crue cracked open an eye to see what the noise was, and found himself staring at a bird, perched on the outside of the bullhead. The Faunus, seeing the black bird apparently staring at him, could only think to say one thing.

"The fuck do you want crow?" He asked. The crow, seeming shocked by his words, took off immediately. Crue blinked in surprise. "What the…?" He shook it off, resting his head on the back of the bullhead again.

A short while later, the bullhead came to a stop at Beacon, Crue standing up and stretching. He, along with a few other people, exited the bullhead. The Faunus did not react poorly to the sudden increase in light, thanks to his glasses.

"Glad I've got these. Even if I don't know why I have them." He muttered to himself as he walked down the path before him. "Hey Qrow." He waved as he passed by the huntsman.

" _Hold up."_ Crue's mind and body came to a halt, as he walked backwards, stopping before the hunter, who looked… unamused. "Qrow? Why are you here?"

"I could ask you the same thing." He replied, crossing his arms and tilting his body, the handle of his weapon in full view.

"I asked first."

"I asked second."

"Really?" Crue dead panned. When Qrow said nothing, the Faunus sighed. "I go here." He gestured to the building of Beacon. "I'm a student. And I'm still kinda drunk. So why are you here?"

"I'm a hunter. I can visit any of the academies when I wish." Qrow answered. It was Crue's turn to cross his arms and tilt his body.

"Really? Earlier you said you had to meet with a friend. Show some kids how it's done." Crue squinted at the older man, unseen due to his glasses. "And I'm kinda done with all this secretive bull. I mean, I was talking to a friend of yours earlier-" "You what?"

Qrow cut across the student, red eyes narrowing suspiciously. Crue sighed. "Jesus Christ it's a joke!" Crue exclaimed. "I was on the bullhead earlier and a crow was on the window. I asked it what it wanted, rhetorically by the way, and it flew off."

Qrow looked as though he was going to say something, but changed his mind halfway through. "You called it a crow?"

Crue's expression turned to that of exasperation. "No. I called it a fucking turkey-dove- Of course I called it a crow!" He rubbed his temples, a headache coming on.

"QROW!" And the headache continues. The hunter turned and felt his blood turned to ice, as Glynda Goodwitch stared at him, olive eyes filled with fury. "You were supposed to be here an hour ago."

"Uh, was I now?" Qrow asked, patting down his vest, trying to grab his flask.

"Yes. And we're still missing a student that you're supposed to let shadow you." The deputy informed.

" _Wait."_ Crue thought. The Faunus stepped to side, peering around Crue, as the taller hunter had blocked him from Goodwitch's view. The witch blinked, seeing the student suddenly appear.

"Mr. Cullen. Where have you… It's not important." The blonde huntress shook her head, her hair bouncing slightly. "Ozpin has requested that you meet him in his office, along with Qrow."

The two males looked at each other, before turning back to Glynda. "Professor Ozpin wants me, and him, in his office?" The Faunus asked. Glynda nodded.

"Yes. Now, please be quick about it." The deputy turned on her heel, and walked away, the sound of her footsteps clacking against the ground.

"Did you know about this?" Crue asked.

"I knew I was gonna be looking after some first years. That was about it." Qrow replied. "Did you?"

"No." Crue answered. The two sighed, and simultaneously reached into their shirts, pulled out a flask and drank.

"This is going to be a long day."

…

On the other side of Beacon, in a dorm room we know all too well, a certain Heiress was finishing up her letter to her sister. "There… That should do it." Weiss reread the letter, checking for any spelling mistakes or grammar errors.

It was free of both, as expected of a Schnee. Weiss smiled contently to herself, and was in the process of placing the letter in an envelope, when she remembered something.

" _P.S. I apologise for not mentioning this beforehand, but I did not think it important. A short while ago, as my friends and I were studying for our exams, Crue, I have mentioned him before in a previous letter, said something interesting._

 _A rather, curious situation arose, where Crue ended up carrying me. I would like to specify that there was no hidden meaning behind this, as I had previously annoyed him, and ended up being punished. However, as he was bringing me back to our study group, I mentioned something about him being lucky you were not there._

 _He truly was lucky, as I can only imagine what you would have done should you have seen him carrying me. My exact words were: "You are lucky my sister isn't here." And he responded with: "Tell Winter I said hi."_

 _I do not believe I have ever mentioned you by name to him, which led me to wonder whether or not you know him. I know that I have mentioned you before, but never directly to Crue. I doubt this is of any real concern, I just thought you should know._

 _Your loving sister,_

 _Weiss Schnee."_

Weiss reread the entire letter once more, triple checking her after thoughts. Then, with a smile, she folded the letter, placed it into an envelope, and left the room. Heading to the mailroom, she was confident that her letter, and query would reach her sister.

And that there would be no consequences whatsoever.

* * *

 _Ok this one was kinda short and kinda rushed but I have explanation. I'm not gonna be here (here being Ireland) for two weeks. So, unfortunately, that means no updates. But, we get to see how Crue and Qrow interact. They get along rather well don't you think?_

 _Also, keep in mind Crue ended up in Remnant before he saw Volume 4. Which means he doesn't know Qrow's Semblance. That could backfire horribly, in more ways than one. Also, Crue doesn't know that Qrow can actually change into a crow._

 _He has a theory he can, but has yet to see any solid proof. It's funny, after writing down Qrow's appearance I realised how much the two dress alike. Crue's outfit seems to be a cross between Qrow and Flynt Coal. Weird, and unintentional._

 _And finally, the letter. Nothing gets by Weiss Schnee. This goes to show that Crue sometimes forgets what he 'doesn't' know. This is one of those times. I wonder how this could change the story. I wonder what it is Qrow and Crue are being called to Ozpins office for. I know, of course. And you shall too, eventually._

 _So, no updates for two weeks, sorry about that, so take this time to relax, go over what you know, and think about what you want to know, and when I return, there will be a glorious update I swear it. Anyway, hope you enjoyed, if you did let me know, if you have any questions, leave them be. And as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	23. Training Montage

_In the eternal words of Russell Casse:_

 _HELLO BOYS! I'M BAAAAAACK!_

* * *

" _Mirror Mirror, I need to see, the one who belongs next to me._ " Salem stared at her jagged, crystalline mirror as she sat alone in her throne room. While she knew there was no need to rhyme, she found it aesthetically suitable to do so. The lack of a reaction from the room around her made her recall why she was alone. Tyrian was in the battle hall, testing her Grimm. Hazel was in his room, sleeping more than likely.

She had sent Watts away on an important mission, to meet up with Envy. The Queen of Grimm lightly rolled her eyes as she mentally corrected herself. " _To meet with Cinder."_ The young girl had not successfully hacked the CCT, and so she had Watts go to Beacon in order to 'increase' their digital security.

Salem smiled briefly, recalling that Lust and Gluttony were also out in the field, following her orders. The smile disappeared when she noticed the silence of the room. Salem couldn't believe that after everything she had been through, loneliness would sting the most. She returned her gaze to her corrupted mirror, which had yet to show her what she wanted.

"What was it Watts always said…?" Salem wondered, staring at the extremely blurred image. "Ah, yes. _No matter how advanced the technology, if it's not working, just whack it a few times._ " She recounted her subordinates words, and then followed them through.

She smacked the mirror against her table of dark crystal, and the picture cleared. "So you didn't know about this?" A voice came through the mirror.

"I already told ya, I didn't know you were part of it." A gruffer voice responded. Salem's eyes widened, recognising the second voice. The mirror showed what appeared to be a set of doors, and the Queen wondered where the man she sought was.

" _The mirror is supposed to show the reflection of the closest reflective surface, why can I not see him."_ She thought with a scowl, staring at the unmoving grey doors.

"I know. I'm just, concerned. If I'm involved in anything, it probably won't go well." The first voice said. His words caused the second to chuckle.

"You're scared?"

"I ain't scared o' shit. Except a wooden spoon." The image on the mirror shivered. "And for good reason."

"A wooden spoon? You told me you kicked a dozen White Fang members last night, but a wooden spoon scares you?" The second voice came again. The view of the mirror shifted slightly and allowed Salem to catch the chin of Qrow Branwen.

"Damn straight." The view turned back to the same silver doors. "How much longer until we hit Ozpin's office?"

Salem's eyes widened in distress. Ozpin would definitely be able to tell that she was communicating, or attempting to communicate with her Wrath. She brought a hand up and held it before the mirror.

"Farewell, my King piece."

...

"You say something?" Crue asked Qrow, glancing up at the hunter. Qrow let out an indistinguishable grunt, which the Faunus took as a no. He shrugged, and faced the elevator doors once more.

"Did he tell you where you were going?" Crue asked.

Qrow let out an audible sigh. "Kid, I know there's no such thing as a stupid question, but c'mon. I told you everything I know."

"Right, right. Just, hope my bad luck doesn't feck us over." Crue sighed, hands in his pockets. Qrow stared at the boy, red eyes wide. He was about to say something, when the elevator dinged open.

Both males eyes looked to the now open door, and Crue felt his eyes turn to pinpricks.

"Why is he here?!" Two males shouted at the exact same time. Crue strode out of the elevator meeting the other man halfway. Crue and Cardin glared at each other, neither backing down from their staring match.

"Because you and Cardin do not see eye to eye, aside from right now." Came Ozpins ever wise voice. The males broke eye contact, and stared at their headmaster. The rest of Team CRDL were stood by the desk, with Professor Goodwitch on the other side.

"Qrow, Crue, how nice of you to join us." The blonde woman said. The Faunus, as well as the Faunus hater, walked towards the headmaster, Cardin standing beside his group, and Crue standing a bit away.

"This is what you called me in for Oz?" Qrow called, waltzing up to stand beside Crue.

"Correct." The headmaster replied. He intertwined his fingers and turned his attention to his students. "Gentlemen, you are here with Professor Branwen for your mission."

"We're what?!" The students cried out, Crue in particular.

"You mean the mission we chose before the Breach?" Dove clarified.

"Yes, you have yet to go on your mission, and that is why this Huntsman is here." Ozpin told them all.

"But I went on mine!" Crue complained.

"No, you did not." Goodwitch sighed, as Ozpin began to smile. The Faunus turned to the deputy with a pleading look, not that she could see correctly with his glasses. "As Ozpin stated roughly two weeks ago, you were never officially a student until you completed the initiation."

Crue's face fell, as Ozpin smiled and continued. "Yes, and as you had originally gone to Mountain Glenn with Doctor Oobleck without being an official huntsman in training, you were simply tagging along for the ride."

"I'm going to kill you." Crue said, with the utmost seriousness. The tone he used made even Goodwitch grip her crop a little more tightly.

"Ah yes, through inaction was it?" Ozpin smiled, hazel eyes glancing over to Qrow, who looked at his companion in surprise.

"Never heard a student threaten to kill the headmaster before. Even back in my day, no one's that ballsy." He nodded.

"Thanks." Crue said shortly.

"Wasn't a compliment."

"Didn't take it as one."

Qrow let out a deep chuckle. "I like this one."

Glynda let out a sigh, as Ozpin smirked. "Either way, CRDL and Crue are going to the nearby town of Mentis. Think of it as both your mission, and a bonding exercise."

"Bonding exercise?" Crue and Cardin repeated at the same time, with the same tone.

"Correct." The headmaster nodded. "As I have noticed, the two of you have quite the opposing mind set."

"That, is because he's a racist. Against my race." Crue enunciated angrily.

Qrow turned to Cardin with a raised eyebrow. "You let racists into your school Oz?"

The team leader growled as he refused to look the hunter in the eye. "Mr. Winchester has certain, negative qualities about him yes." Ozpin nodded. "But I believe he will be able overcome those problems."

Cardin let out a short, dry laugh. "Not if I'm with this jerk. He's proving everything I already believe."

The other members of CRDL glanced at each other, then over at Crue. The Faunus glared at them, though the action went unseen thanks to his glasses.

"So basically, you're sending a Faunus, and a racist, to a town, with me?" Qrow clarified with Ozpin.

"Correct."

Every male there sighed, minus the one who was smirking in his chair. Mimicking each other's actions exactly, Qrow and Crue both took an arm, reached into their dress shirt, extracted a hip flask and drank at the same time.

"Oh dear lord. He's another Qrow." Goodwitch's eyes widened as she realised the similarities between the two males before her.

Qrow and Crue glanced to each other, while they still had their flasks to their lips. "What's in yours?" The Faunus asked.

"Whiskey. Yours?" The elder hunter responded.

"Rum. Trade?"

"Maybe when you earn it." Qrow chuckled, pocketing his flask. Crue did the same, turning back to his teachers.

"And only now do I realise I just drank in front of Ms. Goodwitch." Crue's eyes widened in realisation, as he took a few steps towards an open window.

"Yes, I wondered when that would connect within your mind." The blonde deputy gripped her riding crop, beginning to raise it, a purple glow emanating from the tip of it. Crue felt something from inside his shirt try to force itself out, and realised what it was Goodwitch was trying to do.

Crue's hand gripped where his heart, and his hip flask, were situated. "You can pry my drink from my cold dead hands." The Faunus warned. The momentary surprise that the threat caused the deputy was enough for Crue to free his alcohol from the telekinetic grip.

"Mr. Cullen. You are not allowed to drink alcohol on school premises." Ozpin said to the Faunus.

Crue said nothing, but gestured to Qrow. As the eyes landed on the huntsman, who looked as though he was just thrown under a bus, Crue took the opportunity to down the rest of his drink.

Qrow's expression went from peeved to impressed, as the others, all focusing on him, hadn't noticed the action. Instead of outing him, he turned to Ozpin. "I _really,_ like this one."

They turned back to Crue, who was smirking, and holding his flask upside down, shaking it lightly. "Well, Ozpin. As you can see, there is no alcohol on the school premises."

Goodwitch began to shake in fury, whereas Ozpin chuckled. "I suppose you are correct."

Glynda glared at her employer, who conveniently avoided her gaze. "Now, get to bed and rest. You have a big day this week."

"It's this week?" Crue complained. "I only found out about this today."

"Yes, what a shame that is. Perhaps if someone had been a bit more polite when they talked about coffee they would have been given more warning." The grey haired man said dismissively.

Crue's eye twitched. "Tea is better." He said shortly. Both Goodwitch and Qrow inhaled deeply, the latter biting his knuckle as he waited for Ozpin's reaction. The headmaster showed no sliver of emotion.

"That is your opinion. Now, if you and team CRDL could kindly leave my office to prepare for the outing in two days." Ozpin said calmly, gesturing to the elevator doors, which opened as they were pointed at.

"Creepy…" Crue heard Dove mutter. The team made their way to the elevator, Crue following shortly after. The Faunus stopped, realising he would be stuck in an enclosed space with Cardin. He spun on his heel and headed towards a window.

"I'm taking the shorter route." He told Ozpin, as he opened the window and jumped. Qrow coughed up some of what he had been drinking, looking to Ozpin with wide eyes.

The headmaster sat in his chair, calm as ever, sipping his coffee. "You really aren't gonna react to the fact one of your students just jumped out the window?"

Ozpin shrugged indifferently. "He has done it before. He's still learning to control his Semblance. He should be fine."

"Should be?" Qrow repeated. He felt a buzz in his pocket, and took out his scroll. He had received a message from Crue, which simply read: "Still alive".

"Ok, now that I know he's alive." Qrow pocketed his scroll and faced his employer with a serious gaze. "What did you _actually_ call me in for, Oz?"

…

"Why is he here? And why I am going on another mission?" Crue questioned, staring at the sky as he leaned against the wall of the tower. "This makes no damn sense." He groaned, rubbing his eyes under his glasses.

"You talk to yourself a lot?" Crue heard a voice call. He turned, seeing Cardin exiting the building along with his teammates. The Faunus frowned, seeing the bully's cocky smirk.

"Have to. Only way to be sure of intelligent conversation around here." Crue shot back, seeing Cardin's smirk disappearing immediately. He heard a snigger, and saw Sky covering his mouth.

The bully glared at his teammate, before storming off to the dorms, leaving the four males on their own. "Why do you follow him?" Crue asked the three students.

"He's our leader." Russel answered. "Kinda have to."

Crue sighed, shaking his head. "Why do you do nothing but piss him off?" Dove asked the Faunus, with only a slight annoyance in his tone.

" 'Swhat I do best." Crue shrugged. "When he stops being a racist, I'll stop pissing him off." He thought for a moment. "Intentionally."

"You're, uh," Russel began to speak. "You're cool with us though? Right?"

"Eh." Crue waved his hand side to side. "Depends. Do you hate me?"

"We hate you cause you're kind of a dick." Sky said. "Not cause you're a Faunus." Crue smirked and clicked his fingers, pointing at Sky.

"That's the reasoning I like to hear."

"I'm actually cool with you." Russell raised a hand. "I like your taste in music." Crue blinked briefly, before smiling.

"Nice to see someone who appreciates the good things in life." The Faunus stood straight from wall of the tower and twisted his back, popping a few joints. "I'm gonna get some last minute training in. If Cardin wants to fight me, I'll be at the arena."

He began walking to amphitheatre, planning to grab his hurley and see if anyone wanted to spar. He quickly remembered the weight missing from his forearms and took out his scroll. " _Did I leave my claws at the club?"_ He sent the text to Junior, and hoped that none of the others had not somehow gotten a hold of his lesser known weapons.

" _And my tie. Still don't know where that is."_ The Faunus scratched at his collar, the piece of fabric that was usually tied around there missing, and causing him to feel uncomfortable at the lack of familiarity.

As he neared the amphitheatre, his ears twitched, picking up the sounds of a spar already underway. "Wonder who it is." Crue muttered, scratching his ear as he entered the large building. He entered through the doors that were closest to the seats, not wanting to be accidentally attacked should he go in the wrong door.

"Oh, there they are." Crue blinked, seeing the members of Team SSSN, as well as Jaune and Ren all holding their heads in their hands as they stared at the ground. In the arena itself, Ruby and Nora were fighting, the reaper doing quite well.

The other members of RWBY along with Pyrrha were sitting closer to the action, watching the battle unfold. Crue took a seat on the same row as the males. "Gentlemen." He greeted.

The row of heads turned instantly, and then proceeded to groan at the sudden shift in perspective. Crue shook his head, before taking out his pocket watch and checking the time. "Jeez, its one o'clock and you're still hungover. I'd say you must've drank more than me but…"

Jaune, who was sat closest to Crue, turned his head slowly to stare at the boy. "You are not human."

"Damn right. I'm Faunus." The Wolf Faunus smirked. Jaune groaned, and Crue was fairly certain he heard Sun chuckle. "I figured Ren would be ok, seeing as he was up when I was."

"The hangover hit me on the Bullhead. It was not pretty." The ninja explained. Crue leaned forward a bit to meet the raven haired boys magenta eyes. Said eyes were bloodshot as all Hell. Crue winced and took off his glasses.

"Here. You need these more than I do." He handed Ren the shades, the boy taking them gratefully and used them to hide his hangover. Crue turned his attention back to the fight, which was wrapping up.

While Ruby had her speed, she did not have much stamina. Nora's grenades littered the arena floor, blowing up the area around the reaper. Ruby skid to a halt many times, eyes widening as she quickly backpedalled and changed direction, only to be faced with another explosion.

A short while later, a buzzer sounded, indicating that Ruby was below the Aura limit. " _Huh, Ruby lost. I don't think I've ever seen that happening."_ The brunette looked rather upset about the loss, but still picked herself up.

Nora bounded over to help her up, grabbing the younger girl under her arm and lifting her to her feet. The Valkyrie said something that Crue could not make out, but whatever it was, it made Ruby smile and nod her head determinedly.

Crue smiled, seeing Ruby feeling better. He wondered if he'd be able to get a spar with anyone, seeing as the boys were all out for the count, and there was an even number of girls.

"CRUE!" The Faunus, as well as the rest of the males, winced at the sudden shout. Crue looked to the arena, seeing a burst of rose petals where Ruby had previously been.

"Uh oh." Was all Crue was able to say, before he was unceremoniously tackled from his seated position and thrown onto the floor. He blinked a few times, seeing silver eyes looking down on him. "Hi." He groaned.

"Where have you been?" The leader tried to put on a professional tone, but failed rather miserably. Not too long after he had been tackled, the other females all made their way over to him, Yang picking him up from Ruby's grasp.

"Thanks." The Faunus groaned out.

"Don't mention it." Yang nodded, walking towards the arena, Crue still in her grasp.

"Uh, Yang?" Blake called after her teammate.

"Crue's here to spar, right?" The blonde turned to the male she was holding. Crue nodded uncertainly. "Well, then I'm happy to spar. After all, we still have to make up for that match that apparently had a handicap."

Crue turned pale, as he realised what exactly was going on. "W-When I said spar, I meant spar. Not a DeathBattle!"

"Shame." Yang chuckled as she chucked Crue towards the locker room so that he could grab his weapon. Crue landed on his feet and stumbled into the door, a loud ' _CRACK'_ echoing through the arena.

"…Was that from the door or your nose?" Yang called.

"Probably both." Crue growled back, cupping his nose as he entered the room. The Faunus groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose, walking next to the row of lockers to get to his own.

"0. 3. 1. 3." Crue muttered, tapping the code in without looking. His locker swung open, revealing Setanta, its blue metal shining against the bright lights of the locker room. "I hate that day." He frowned, grabbing the hurl.

He swung it once in a circle, before gripping it tight and walking back to the arena. He sniffed once, the whack of the door still making his head ring. "Feels weird not wearing my glasses." Crue thought, scratching at the side of his head, a place usually covered by his sunglasses.

Crue entered the arena, hurl resting on his shoulder. "Whoo! There he is, the Wolf that can outdrink my uncle, according to the testimony of the hungover." Yang announced, smiling widely. Crue couldn't help but smirk at his words.

"Bring that up with your uncle and see how he feels." Crue chuckled.

"Wait. Do you know Qrow?" Yang lowered her arms in confusion. Crue sighed and shook his head.

"Are we talking or fighting?" He questioned. Yang blinked, before shaking her blonde hair and bringing her arms back up.

"Right. Need to keep my winning streak." The blondes smile widened. Crue rolled his eyes in response. "Hey! I saw that!" Yang called, causing Crue to freeze as he remembered that he wasn't wearing those glasses.

"Reeen." Crue called. "Gonna need those back in a bit." The ninja groaned in response, while having his back rubbed by Nora. Similarly, Pyrrha was rubbing Jaune's back, the yellow knight a rather concerning shade of green.

Crue turned his attention back to Yang. " _Kinda have mixed feelings about wanting to win this one."_ He thought as he took a stance, gripping his hurl with both hands. A small countdown started, as both Yang and Crue's profiles popped up.

The ' _ding'_ that signalled the start of the battle sounded, and both blondes rushed forward. Crue shifted his hurl into its sword form and raised it high above his head with both arms. The Faunus was about to let out a battle cry, when he felt a train hit him in the gut.

It may as well have been a train for all the force Yang put into the punch. With an added shotgun blast for extra kick, Crue was sent flying backwards. The Faunus landed on his back and skid a fair distance on the ground.

Crue lay blinking on the ground, his sword still held above him. "What… just happened?" The Faunus didn't move, focusing on his hands gripping the sword, and realised something.

"Uh, Crue? You ok?" Yang called unsurely. The boy sat up, still staring at the sword.

"I… don't know how to use this." Crue answered. Yang's lilac eyes blinked, and she held up a hand to Weiss. The heiress, who was in control of the battle settings, quickly pushed a few buttons on her scroll.

Both Yang and Crue's profiles turned grey and moved backward on the screen, the words 'MATCH PAUSED' flashing up in red. The strange occurrence was enough to get the rest of Team RWBY down onto the arena floor to wonder what was going on.

"What's going on?" Ruby asked.

"Crue doesn't remember how to fight." Yang explained. The girls expressions became more confused, as they turned to the Faunus. Crue wore a blank look as he stared at his sword.

"I don't remember how to use a sword." Crue corrected. "I don't know how to use a sword." He repeated.

"But, what about all the fights you had before? You were able to use a sword in those." Blake commented. "What's different now?" She asked.

Crue wondered that himself. "I- I don't know." He put his hand against his head, feeling a headache coming on. His eyes widened as he realised something. "Glasses."

"What?" Weiss asked in confusion.

"My glasses. I-I'm not wearing my glasses." Crue's eyes landed on a certain ninja up in the stands, who was wearing said glasses. " _They must have a purpose or something."_

"You think that if you put your glasses on, you'll know how to use a sword?" Blake asked. After hearing how strange the statement sounded out loud, Crue grabbed his arm with his hand and looked away.

The four girls blinked in surprise, never before seeing the boy act so… aloof. "Y-Yeah, you're right. It's a stupid idea. I'll just, fight without knowing how to use a sword."

"Is there anything you know how to use?" Yang asked. Crue thought for a moment, before staring down at his sword. He pressed a button, and it shifted back into its hurley form.

"I know how to use this. A-And my fists, I guess." The Faunus answered. Yang frowned, not particularly wanting to fight Crue if he didn't know how to use the other half of his weapon, seeing it as a handicap.

"Maybe we should call off the spar." Yang offered. The suggestion made her teammates eyes go wide in shock.

"No." Crue shook his head. "I'm gonna have to do this, sword or no sword." He sighed looking at his metal hurl. "Just, go easy on me?" He smiled awkwardly, making his way back to his starting place. Yang frowned, but did the same.

The other three girls made their way back up to the stands, Weiss starting up the battle once more. With trembling knees, Crue readied himself for the battle. " _Why?! Why can't I fight?!"_ The Faunus' grip on the weapon tightened as the countdown neared zero.

Yang started the battle by firing off a single shotgun blast. Crue shook as it approached, before swinging his hurl and batting it away. The blast swung off into wall, not landing anywhere near Yang. The blonde shot another blast off, and started moving toward Crue.

Crue dodged the blast by scrambling to the side. He flipped his hurl around and took aim at Yang, the blonde momentarily freezing. Crue fired, and missed. And then he fired again. And he missed. And he missed again. And then he fired. And he missed. And then he fired. And then he fired. And he missed both times.

Yang, on the other hand, shot two blasts towards Crue, both of them hitting him in the torso. The two blasts knocked his Aura down to the yellow, the Faunus grunting out in pain. Yang winced lightly, but Crue held up a hand to wave off her worry.

" _I just have to… pretend its hurling."_ Crue looked up to Yang, the brawlers lilac eyes laced with worry. Crue closed his own eyes, and took a deep breath, concentrating on the game he loved to play back in his world.

When he opened his eyes, he saw Yang wearing a helmet with a metal grid in front of her face. Her clothing had changed to that of a yellow and black jersey with her symbol over her heart. And in her right hand, Yang held a sliotar.

" _Get the ball."_ Crue focused on Yang, as he gripped his hurl, and sped towards the blonde. Yang's eyes widened as she backpedalled away from a swing that was aimed at her hand. She briefly wondered what had gotten into Crue, before shaking the thought away and focusing on the fight.

Crue swung his hurl once more, getting Yang to duck. The blonde threw out a punch to Crue's stomach, causing the Faunus to cough up spit. To Yang's surprise, Crue brought an elbow down on his opponents head, sending her crashing into the floor.

Crue backed up immediately, an imaginary ball in his hand. He blinked, and Yang was back in her usual outfit. Crue swapped his hurl around and held the trigger down, as he waited for Yang to get back up.

Crue caught the Dust sliotar with his gloved hand, tossing it up and down to get a feel for it. Yang got back to her feet, her eyes flickering red. "I thought you didn't know how to fight!" She called out, annoyed at the Faunus.

"I don't know how to use a sword. I know how to use this." He held his hurley aloft. "Thanks for going easy on me."

"Yeah, I'm a real saint." Yang said sarcastically, before firing off a shotgun blast towards Crue. Steely blue eyes widened, as he dodged the blast. Yang shot continuous blasts, Crue moving at awkward angles to avoid getting hit.

While Crue was playing a rather deadly game of dodgeball, the other members of team RWBY were huddled together and talking. "Why can't he fight without the glasses?" Weiss wondered.

Blake, who recalled trying on the glasses, thought of an answer. "Have you ever heard of a magic feather?" She asked.

"What do birds have to do with this?" Ruby asked, tilting her head.

"It's not an actual feather." Blake deadpanned. "It's a term for an item that helps a character do, something. Fly, win… fight." The other two females eyes widened as they looked at their well-read Faunus teammate.

"You think the glasses are magic?" Weiss asked suspiciously. Blake shook her head.

"No, a magic feather isn't actually magic. But the person who's using it thinks it is and therefore it helps them win." The raven haired girl explained. "I read about it in a story about a flying Goliath." The other two blinked.

"I remember reading that." Ruby recalled. "Jumbo, right?"

"That's the one." Blake nodded. Weiss still looked between her two teammates with confusion.

"What?" The heiress asked in confusion.

"It's an old children's tale. One that was supposed to make us think of Grimm of less terrifying." Blake explained. "But, the point is, maybe Crue only thinks he can fight with the glasses because he's always been wearing them."

"But, what about that time he took on all of CRDL? His glasses fell off then, didn't they?" Ruby pointed out. Weiss and Blake nodded, before the heiress spoke up.

"Yes, but after his glasses fell, he used Russel as an impromptu weapon. Then, instead of using his hurl against Cardin, he threw it in the air to distract him." Weiss recalled the battle.

"What about the Breach? I think they fell off there." Ruby tried.

"He didn't use his sword during that." Blake told her leader. "At the start, he was just shooting and using his hurl. He wasn't really going for accuracy with the gun, so I guess he didn't notice."

The three girls huddled together as Crue continued dodging Yang's blasts, the only thing he could actually do at the moment. " _Thank God I was good at dodgeball!"_ Crue thought as he leaped away from another blast.

"Crue, I get you can't fight any more for some reason." Yang called. "But you aren't gonna learn anything if you keep dodging." The Faunus' grip on his weapon tightened at her words. The blonde sent another blast rocketing towards Crue.

"Guess you're right." Crue murmured, as he swung his hurl at full force, connecting with the shotgun blast. The blast was sent spinning back towards Yang, changing from red to blue as it spun in the air.

Yang's lilac eyes widened, as she ducked under the blast. The blue blast exploded behind Yang, causing a small bit of damage to her Aura. Yang looked up to Crue with a small smirk. "Lucky shot."

Crue smiled back. "Yeah, let's hope the luck keeps up." Crue's grip on the Dust ball tightening as he tossed it in the air, and brought his hurl back. The hurl connected with the ball, and sent it hurdling towards Yang.

Instead of hitting the brawler as Yang expected, it hit the ground just before her, exploding in a shower of debris. Yang positioned her arms in a cross across her face to prevent any serious damage. She cracked open an eye, and her instincts kicked in, her eyes turning red.

Yang crouched down, and Crue's hurl went soaring over her head. The brawler followed up the duck with the punches to Crue's stomach, giving the last one an added shotgun blast, sending the Faunus flying backwards.

A buzzer sounded out, and Yang's eyes blinked back to lilac. She looked up to the screen, seeing that Crue's Aura level had fallen into the red, signalling the end of the match. She walked over to the panting Faunus, who was staring at the ceiling angrily.

"Crue? You alright buddy?" She questioned, her hands on her knees as she looked at the boy.

"Peachy." Crue grunted, sitting up and wrapping his arms around his knees. "…why can't I fight?" He spoke softly. He saw a hand enter his vision, so he reached up and grabbed it. Yang pulled the Faunus up to his feet.

"C'mon. Let's get your glasses back on, see if that helps." The blondes made their way back up to the seating area, joining the rest of RWBY.

" _Why can I only fight with my glasses?"_ Crue wondered as he sat down. " _Is there something different? It's not like I suddenly become smarter when I wear them or something."_ As he waited, he saw the subject of his confliction appear before him.

"Here, Crue. You can wear your glasses now." Ruby handed the object tentatively to the Faunus. Crue took them and stared at his reflection, not putting them on. "Aren't you gonna put them on?"

" _If I put them on, I fight without knowing how. That means, that somehow, you're controlling me with these."_ Crue's grip on the glasses tightened, as he folded it and hung it on his waist coat. "No." He shook his head.

"Wha? But, you said you can't fight without them!" Weiss exclaimed, looking at Crue like he was mad.

"Exactly!" The Faunus stated. "I can't fight without these!" He gestured to the glasses, before his hand fell to the side. "That means… That means I have to learn how to fight." His head fell, as he stared at the ground.

The others all looked at each other solemnly. "We'll teach you." Crue looked up to see Ruby's bright silver eyes staring at him. "We'll help you learn how to fight. Right guys?" The leader looked to her teammates hopefully.

"Yeah!" Yang threw a fist into the air. "We're not letting you lose your skill just because you aren't wearing glasses."

"Letting someone in Beacon be here, without proper training, well that just isn't right." Weiss said adamantly.

"You're our friend, Crue. Of course we'll help you." Blake smiled at her fellow Faunus.

Crue felt liquid build up behind his eyes, so he forced it back. "You guys are terrible? You know that?" He laughed, rubbing his eye with his knuckle.

"Yeah. We're the worst." Ruby smiled, as she hugged Crue, prompting the others to do the same. It also prompted another person to join in on the hug.

"GROUP HUG!" Nora exclaimed, practically tackling the group as she hugged them. The males that were hungover winced at the sudden shout, covering their ears and groaning. Pyrrha looked sympathetically at Jaune, before joining the others.

"Why the hug?" She asked politely.

"We're gonna be training Crue." Ruby smiled, before she gasped and broke the hug, rushing over to Pyrrha in a flurry of rose petals. "Pyrrha! Do you think you can help us train him?"

The four time champion of the Mistral Regionals leaned back in surprise, her emerald eyes darting over to Crue, and then to Jaune. "I think she's got her hands full with training." Crue commented.

The redhead looked to Crue in confusion and slight fear. "What do you mean Crue?" Weiss asked. The Faunus realised that the others did not know about Jaune's training with Pyrrha. And that he himself shouldn't know.

"I-I mean, look at her. She's Pyrrha Nikos." Crue gestured a hand to the Spartan, causing the group to look at her. "She's probably got people constantly asking her to train them. If someone saw her training me they could accuse her of, I don't know. Favouritism or something."

"Y-Yes." Pyrrha agreed. "Though if you picked a discreet time I would not mind. I would prefer to choose the time, if that's alright with you." Emerald met steely blue, as Crue sensed a hidden question behind the request.

"Yeah. That's fine." He smiled. "I'll take any help I can get, at any time." The others seemed surprised at his statement, but did not comment on it.

"I will design the training schedule, we can all take turns training him, and perhaps even bring in Jaune and Ren." Weiss decided, before her eyes fell on the hunched figures of SSSN. "I'm sure they can help as well."

"This is… I…" Crue sighed, not being able to find the words. "Thank you. All of you." He said with a smile. His eyes suddenly shot open as he remembered something. "Uhh, how much training could we get done in like, two days?"

"Very little." Blake said with a raised eyebrow. "Why?"

"Because, I kinda have to go on another mission." There was an instant chorus of " _WHAT!?"_ which was repeated when Crue mentioned: "It's going to be with CRDL."

"Why do you have to go on another mission? With CRDL!?" Blake exclaimed, her usually calm demeanour broken by the information.

"Because Ozpin is a fecking Troll." Crue rubbed his head. "You know how I 'wasn't an official Beacon Student' until I completed the initiation?" The six girls before him nodded. "Yeah, that also means the mission I went on didn't count."

"Ohhh." The group before him said. "It makes, sense in a way." Pyrrha thought.

"I know. Which is why I hate it." Crue complained. "Not like I can go against him." While the others assumed that Crue was speaking about Ozpin, in reality he was talking about another person could not defy easily.

"So who's training him first?" Yang asked the group.

"Dibs!" Ruby cried, her hand shooting in the air. When the others turned to look at her, the hand lowered slowly. "What? It was my idea."

"Yes, but what could you teach him? You use a scythe, Crue uses a sword." Weiss questioned, gesturing to Myrnaster that was attached to her hip.

"It's also a high impact, customisable sniper rifle." Ruby folded her arms and nodded to Weiss. "Which is what I was going to teach him. How to shoot. You saw how often he missed when he was fighting Yang."

Crue's expression fell at that. "Oh! Sorry Crue! I didn't mean-"

"It's fine Ruby." The Faunus cut across her with a wave of his hand, a comforting smile on his face. "You're not wrong. I'll be happy to train under you."

Ruby's eye lit up at the prospect, a wide smile growing across her face. "Yes! Don't worry Crue! By the time I'm finished with you, you'll be able to hit the wings off a fly."

"Instead of not being able to hit the broadside of a barn." Yang chuckled. "Ow." Her ear was tugged by Weiss, who looked upon the blonde sternly.

"Don't be rude. You agreed to help too. Now come on. We have to discuss the training schedule while Crue trains with Ruby." The heiress instructed, pulling Weiss by the ear as the others followed, leaving the two that would be training to themselves.

Along with six hungover males. "Maybe we should go somewhere else so that we don't disturb them while we're practicing." Ruby thought.

"They should be fine." Crue hoped. "Let's just get down and start this up." The Faunus headed down to the arena, Ruby following right after, her weapon tucked behind her cloak.

"Ok, so first, show me Setanta." Ruby requested. Crue looked at his hurl, and then back to Ruby.

"Can I see Crescent Rose?" He questioned. Ruby instantly gripped her weapon tighter, holding it close to her. "You don't have to if you don't want to." Crue reassured her.

The reaper relaxed slightly, before handing her weapon to Crue. "It's folded up right now, I wouldn't really recommend turning it into its scythe form." Crue nodded, giving his weapon to Ruby.

The leader took the weapon and looked down its sights. The handled of the hurley doubled as a pair of iron sights, which Ruby thought was a good idea, but also not good for distance shooting. "It's so small." She murmured, comparing it to her own weapon.

' _BANG'_

Ruby turned, seeing Crue lying a fair distance away from her on his back, the barrel of Crescent Rose smoking. "Ow…" The Faunus murmured. Ruby sighed lightly, lowering Crue's weapon.

"This… may take a while."

* * *

 _About. Fucking. TIME._

 _That's probably what you're all thinking right? I agree. Writers block hit me like a damn truck I'll be honest. I thought I'd be able to write a bit in Barcelona. I was mistaken. But hey, it's hear now. And a bit more plot develops._

 _Crue needs to go to a nearby town with Qrow and CRDL. That is going to be fun. Qrow will probably spend most of that trip drunk so he doesn't have to deal with the shit that will go on between Cardin and Crue._

 _Or will there be shit? Considering how Crue's personality has suddenly shifted. A lack of fighting ability and a tamer Crue is what's being shown right now. How did this come to be? Will it change? How will Cinder react to this Crue? How will Crue react to this Cinder? Well, maybe we'll find out in the next chapter._

 _Anyway, hope you enjoyed, leave a review if you did, and as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	24. Information Breach

"GAH!" Crue cried out in pain as he hit the floor, clutching his stomach. Weiss covered her mouth in shock and went to move forward, but was halted by Crue's raised hand. "I'm fine." He grunted out, getting up on all fours before standing.

"Crue, if you're not able for this we can stop." The heiress glanced up to the stands, were the rest of her team were watching the training spar with hesitant eyes.

"No." Crue shook his head, gripping his sword tightly. "I've got to… I've got to learn." He panted slightly, before raising his sword and pointed it at Weiss. The Faunus tried his best to match Weiss' posture.

Weiss frowned, before taking her stance, and shooting forward. Crue moved forward, much slower than Weiss. Crue turned his sword horizontally, and swung. The heiress' eyes widened as she bent her back to duck under the swing.

Her momentum carried her behind Crue, where she spun on her heel and connected the tip of her sword with Crue's back. "FUH!" The Faunus fell forward, landing on his knees and falling to the floor. He growled to himself, before pushing himself up and swinging his sword back.

It hit Weiss' rapier, the two blades causing sparks to fly. Crue pushed down, causing Weiss to briefly fold under the weight. Crue's apparent upper hand lasted for all of five seconds, before Weiss angled her rapier and sent Crue's blade crashing into the ground.

The Faunus' eyes widened as a black glyph appeared beneath him. He felt his lunch almost leave him as he went flying skyward. Crue saw the ceiling fast approaching, and reached his arm out to try and touch it.

"Come on. Come on." He stretched, his fingers brushing off the ceiling. "Yes!" He activated his Semblance, something that he was happy that he could still do without his glasses. Crue's feet hit the ceiling and he changed his sword into his hurl and took aim down below.

Weiss raised her hand and created a white glyph to protect her. It was to Crue's small pleasure that his bullets actually hit the glyph, instead of going miles off. Two smaller glyphs appeared on opposite sides of the shield.

Small shards of ice generated in the centre of the two smaller glyphs, and shot towards Crue. The Faunus shot his rifle, destroying one of the ice shards. He was not quick enough to destroy the other piece of ice, and paid for it.

The ice struck his shoulder, the pain causing him to wince and shout out. "GAHK!" Crue's feet fell from the ceiling, the boys eyes widening in fear. He instantly contorted himself, trying to reach the ceiling.

He failed, and Crue felt his heart begin hammering against his chest as he fell. He accepted his fate, and decided to use it to his advantage. Crue turned to face Weiss head on as he fell, pointing his sword directly at her as he fell.

He began to spin as he fell, turning into a blue blur that was headed towards Weiss. The heiress stood straight, held Myrnaster in both hands and plunged it into the ground. Ice formed around her, creating a barrier between herself and Crue.

Seeing as Crue could not stop, he continued unperturbed, aiming straight for the ice. Inside the dome of ice, Weiss waited carefully. The heiress nearly yelped when a blue blade entered the ice but inches from her face.

What followed was a crunching sound that Weiss hoped came from her ice. Looking up, Weiss saw a blurry Crue with his face pressed against the cracked ice. "Ow…" Crue muttered, sliding off of the ice.

The Faunus hit the ground, and sighed. "I guess that's all for today." He stayed on the ground for a brief moment, before standing up and wrenching his sword from the ice. He changed it into its hurley form, and raised it high.

What Crue intended to do, and what actually happened, were two very different things all together. Crue planned to break the ice with his hurl, freeing Weiss. What happened was the ice shattering due to Weiss, just as Crue began swing.

Luckily, Crue managed to slow his momentum enough that it did no lasting damage. "Ow!" It still did some damage however. The hurl tapped Weiss' head roughly, causing a small red mark on the heiress' forehead.

"Ah! Weiss! I didn't mean to." He instantly stepped forward, inspecting the mark.

"I'm fine, Crue." Weiss tried to push the Faunus away, but he wasn't having any of it. The male stepped closer, embracing Weiss and patting her head.

The heiress turned red, but did not reject the hug. After a short moment, Crue broke the hug and looked down at his friend. "Do you want me to get an ice pack or something?"

"No. It will go down soon enough." Weiss told him, stepping away and heading for the bleachers where the rest of her team was seated. Crue looked down to his hurl, spun it once in his hand, and followed Weiss.

He placed his weapon on his back, the magnetic plate holding it in place. He and Weiss got to the top of the stairs, and the others began to approach them. "You did much better this time Crue." Ruby smiled up at the boy.

The Faunus smiled back awkwardly, and turned to Blake and Yang. "She's right." Blake nodded. "You managed to get Weiss down a quarter." Crue relaxed slightly, knowing that if Blake said it she would be saying it honestly, not trying to just cheer him up like Ruby might.

"I think you're trying to copy too much." Yang said, folding her arms. "Like, I get we're training you and everything. But you need to develop your own style. Your sword isn't really built to copy Weiss'."

Everyone stopped for a moment to absorb what the blonde said, and also to stare at her. "What?" Yang smirked. "I'm more than just a pretty face you know."

"We know Yang." Ruby rolled her eyes. "Even if that face has a pimple on its cheek." Yang eyes widened in fear.

"I what?!" She screeched, grabbing Crue by the cuff and holding him up so she could see the reflection of his glasses tucked into his shirt. When she saw that her face was free of blemishes, her eyes briefly flashed red. "Ruby…" She growled out.

With a rush of wind and a burst of rose petals, the reaper was gone. "YOU'RE IN SO MUCH TROUBLE WHEN I CATCH YOU!" Yang cried out, running out of the room after her sister.

The three remaining in the amphitheatre sighed. "Is every sister like this?" Blake asked.

"No." "Yes." Weiss and Crue answered at the same time, the differing answers causing them to look at one another.

"You remember your sisters?" Weiss asked Crue, knowing that he had lost them long ago, and he had lost his memory as well. The Faunus hesitantly nodded.

"Bits and pieces." He told her. "But mostly just them annoying me." He smiled sadly, before lightly smacking the side of his head. "Damn. No time to be getting melancholy. I'm going to go to the gym. See if I can't train a bit more."

Crue left the monochrome pair with a wave, exiting the room. Blake turned to Weiss with a concerned look. "He's going to burn himself out if he keeps this up."

Weiss frowned, nodding in agreement. "I know. But, he's not going to stop. You know how stubborn he is." It was Blake's turn to nod and frown. "Shoot!" Weiss suddenly exclaimed, stamping her foot lightly.

"What? What is it?" The raven haired Faunus asked worriedly.

"Nothing." Weiss sighed. "I just forgot to ask Crue about Winter."

It took a moment to Blake to put the pieces together. "The season or your sister?" She asked.

"Sister." Weiss answered. "I think Crue knows her… somehow."

"How would Crue know your sister? Have you mentioned her to him?" Blake wondered.

"I don't believe I have." Weiss replied honestly. "I perhaps mentioned the fact I _had_ a sister to him, but I never mentioned her by name."

"Well, he didn't know about the Schnee family itself when he woke up. I doubt he'd know about Winter." Blake told her, beginning to head towards the door. "Maybe he just guessed a name. I mean, you do have a rather specific naming method in your family."

Weiss hummed amusedly. "And your parents are not called 'Ebony' or 'Onyx'?" She asked Blake.

"No, actually." The Faunus said with a small, smug smile. "Kali and Ghira."

"Oh." Weiss found herself unable for any other words. "I'm sorry for assuming-"

"It's fine." Blake cut across. "It's not like your mother is called 'Snowflake' or something."

"That sounds like a name you would give a white cat." Weiss scrunched up her nose slightly. Her eyes widened as she stared at Blake. "Not that there's anything wrong with cats. I love cats."

Blake rolled her eyes as Weiss continued to dig herself into a hole, briefly wondering what Crue was planning to do in the gym.

…

" _No glasses. No glasses."_ Crue repeated to himself as he punched a punching bag. " _No. Glasses."_ His punches got more rapid, as his eyes narrowed. " _NO. GLASSES."_ He reared back and delivered another punch.

There was the sound of a breaking chain, and the bag went flying from its suspended spot. Crue let out an angered breath, glad that no one else was in the gym at this particular time. "Huh." The Faunus thought, walking over to pick up the bag and holding it on his shoulder.

"Last time I was here on my own, the only other person was-" "Cullen?" Crue whirled around, and felt the bag come into contact with something. "Gah!" He heard the sound of something hitting the floor, and turned once more.

"Oh shit." Crue cursed, seeing Cinder Fall knocked onto her rear. "Didn't see you there." He let the bag fall and reached out a hand. "You alright?"

Cinder stared at the hand unblinkingly, then up to Crue. "I, am, fine." The half-maiden said in a questioning tone, taking the hand. Crue brought her to her feet, and released her hand.

"I knocked off the punching bag by accident." Crue gestured to the bag laying on the ground. "Didn't see you after I picked it up." The Faunus explained, reaching down and picking it up the bag again.

All through this, Cinder stared at him strangely. "Have you, changed? Somehow?" She asked him, unsure of a better way to put it.

Crue squinted at her for a moment, before his eyes widened. " _Fuck. I'm supposed to hate her and be a dick to her. Wait… That's a dick move."_ "Uh. No?" Crue responded. "Just, trying to be less of a cunt."

Cinder blinked at the word use. "Are you sure you're not from Menagerie?" She asked.

"Uh." Crue racked his brains, trying to recall what Menagerie was. It was thanks to a lesson with Oobleck that he remembered it as the island where most Faunus lived. "Fairly fucking sure."

Cinder's expression turned unamused. "Must you curse so often?"

Crue looked confused for a moment. "Ah fuc- shit I mean- shit- DAMN IT!" The Faunus eventually settled for simply closing his eyes and his lips. "I have been attempting to curse less. Mostly to not influence those younger than me."

Cinder raised one eyebrow. "Ruby." Crue answered.

"Ah, yes." Cinder nodded. "The young leader with the red cloak." She hummed slightly, before gaining a slight smirk. "You must care quite a bit for her, don't you?"

Now, while Crue was not an expert in social situations, he was fairly good at spotting a threat. "You're right. I do." He took a step towards Cinder, causing her to tense.

"And if anything happened to her, or anyone I care about for that matter…" Crue used his height to his full advantage, as his steely blue eyes bored into Cinder's own amber ones. "It would not. End. **Well.** "

"For which party?" Cinder questioned, though her speech wavered slightly. The raven haired woman cursed inwardly at the show of weakness.

Crue let out a deep chuckle at Cinder's question, as he cocked his head to one side and smirked, his smile showing a small fang. "Take a fucking guess."

With that, Crue backed down and turned away from Cinder, heading to the gyms exit. After the door closed, the sound echoing throughout the empty room, Cinder fell to her knees, clutching her heart.

" _How does he do that!?"_ She screamed in her mind. The reason that Cinder Fell was due to Crue's actions. His eyes, his stance and his dangerous demeanour. These things combined sent a mix of fear and arousal through Cinder.

"I need to have a shower." She decided, leaving the room with a blush on her face, praying she didn't run into anyone on the way back to her room.

"Heya Cinder." An amber eye twitched, as Cinder turned to see who had called her. She had to angle herself slightly to meet a pair of bright silver eyes.

"Ruby. Hello." Cinder greeted shortly. "Are you planning on using the gym?" Being forced to make polite conversation was something the raven haired woman greatly detested, but if it would make her leave quicker.

"Yep." She smiled brightly. "Gonna lift some weights."

Now that, made Cinder quirk an eyebrow, examining the girl more closely. She was wearing a black tank top with a red heart, and a pair of gym shorts. She did not seem to have any noticeable muscle anywhere.

"Weights?" Cinder repeated, causing Ruby to nod rapidly.

"Yep. I mean, it's probably nothing compared to my baby but-" "You have a child!?" Cinder exclaimed suddenly.

"Uhh." Ruby droned out, momentarily confused. "Kinda? I mean, I made them myself." Cinder stared at the young girl with wide eyes. "I mean, making them was hard enough. It took so many tries to get it right."

"I mean, I enjoyed all the tries. I probably would have given up if it wasn't so fun." Ruby continued, while Cinder was mentally calculating how fast Crue would kill the father once he got wind of this.

"Does Crue know about this?" The half-maiden asked. Ruby nodded her head, somewhat confusedly.

"Yeah. I mean, it'd be kind of hard for him not to know. He was playing with them yesterday." Ruby shrugged. "He was really careful with my sweetheart."

"Hm." Cinder thought, briefly imagining the Faunus playing with a small girl with brunette hair and silver eyes. In her imagination, the child's eyes shifted to amber, and her hair became darker. The change in appearance caused Cinder to snap back to reality.

"He seems as though he would make a good father figure." She murmured.

"Uh, sure?" Ruby agreed confusedly. "I mean, he's more like a brother to me than anything. Caring, good at keeping secrets, waaaay too overprotective." She chuckled slightly at the last one.

"Overprotective?" Cinder questioned. Ruby seemed to laugh, as though recalling an old joke.

"Yeah. Almost more than Yang. One of the biggest things I remember was from Mountain Glenn." She thought back. "I fell down a hole, and accidentally found a White Fang base."

"Oh really?" Cinder tried to humour the girl, making a mental note that the discovery of the base was in fact accidental.

"Yeah, he saw me fall, and tried to grab me. But… he missed." Ruby looked to the floor for a moment, frowning. "But, after I fell, these two White Fang guys showed up. I lost my weapon when I fell, so they got the drop on me."

"One of them punched me, and knocked me down." She recalled the moment clearly. "I think he was going to step on me or something, but then I heard, something breaking." She shuddered briefly.

"Breaking?" Cinder questioned. As much as she would hate to admit it, she was now invested in the story.

"Yeah. Crue jumped down the hole, and landed on the White Fang guys shoulders." Cinder grimaced, realising the connection between the sound of something breaking. "And then, uhh." Ruby shuddered, her eyes squeezing closed.

"His glasses fell off during the fall, and I could see his eyes when he hit the other White Fang with his hurley." "His what?" "His weapon." Ruby amended. "You know the blue thing?" The small girl held her hands up as though she was holding the weapon in question.

When Cinder nodded, Ruby continued. "Yeah, that thing. He hit him with the hurley, and cracked his mask. But, his eyes." It was as though a cold breeze drifted through the gymnasium, causing both females to shiver.

"They were scary." Ruby said quietly. Cinder nodded in agreement.

"They were unnerving."

"Weird."

"Terrifying."

"Strange."

"Hot."

The silence that followed was so great you could hear a pin drop. And this time there was no Faunus to scream obscenities to break it. "W-What?" Ruby asked, eyes wide.

Cinder began to sweat, realising what she had said. "Hot." She repeated, forming an excuse in her mind. "Do you not know what it means?"

"Uh, it means you thought they were hot." Ruby spoke rather quickly. Cinder gave an awkward chuckle and shook her head.

"No, no. In Haven, it's an anagram." Rubys face fell into one of confusion. "H.O.T. It stands for ' _Horrible Or Terrible'_."

"Ohhhh." Ruby drawled out. "That makes more sense." She nodded.

"It's quite a popular term over there. I suppose I can forgive you, seeing as this is Vale." Cinder gave a half hearted shrug, as she began to walk away. "It was nice talking to you Ruby."

"You too Cinder. See you round!" The younger girl called after the more mature student as she entered the gym.

As Cinder walked down the hall, her posture slackened immensely, only one that on her mind.

" _I can't believe she bought that."_

...

" _~Don't stop me noooow. cause I'm having a good time, I'm having a ball~"_ Crue hummed, listening to music through his headphones. The Faunus was in the middle of Vale, heading to Juniors club so that he could collect his claws.

"How long until the Vytal Festival?" Crue questioned himself, and to a lesser extent, the Author. "You're sending me on a mission, so I'm guessing there's enough time for that." He stuffed his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket, as he walked by a notice board, before halting and walking backwards.

"I hate Deux Ex Machina." Crue murmured, as he read the flyer for the festival. "That's about…" Crue looked down, counting on his fingers. "Three weeks from now? I think." He shrugged, and continued walking.

"So that's enough time for this mission, probably, and other shenanigans." He sighed, before chuckling slightly. "Shenanigans. That's a funny word. She-nan-i-gans. Shenanigans. Shena- ok I'm going to stop now."

He shook his head, listening to the music as he made his way to the shadier side of town, where Juniors bar was located. He passed by a few people that looked as though they would mug him.

He quickly changed their mind by sending a terrifying glare towards them. Crue huffed, putting his hands in his pockets and increasing his pace towards Juniors. A short moment later, Crue opened the doors to Juniors bar, pleased to find that there was no White Fang.

"YO JUNIOR!" Crue called, stepping into the bar, seeing the few other patrons that were there turn to stare at him. "The fuck d'you want?" They glanced away, going back to what they were doing beforehand.

"Thought so." Crue nodded to himself, walking over to the bar where Junior gave a small wave. Crue waved back, and seated himself before the man. "Hey Junior, how's business?"

"It's good, Crue. No more White Fang since that last incident." He smiled. "Want a drink?" Crue took a moment to consider the offer.

"Nah, but if you could fill this up." The Faunus handed Junior his flask. "Maybe with some… I think I'll go for whiskey this time."

Junior nodded, taking the hip flask. "I'll tell Melanie to go get your claws." Crue nodded, before wondering why he was getting Melanie and not Miltia.

He shrugged it off, and glanced around the club while he waited. He nodded to Bruno, the bear head wearing man waving back, as he mixed some tracks. Crue didn't recognised the music, and wasn't particularly fond of club music anyway.

"Gah!" Crue felt something hit his arm, as he turned to glare at the attacker. "Melanie! What the Hell!?" The girl garbed in white looked at the Faunus, unimpressed.

"Miltia mentioned you wanted help training with your claws." Melanie said shortly. When Crue nodded, she continued. "You're not going to do very well if you can be snuck up on." The Faunus deadpanned at her reasoning.

"Motherfu- WE ARE IN A CLUB! WITH LOUD MUSIC! How the Hell am I supposed to hear anyone sneak up on me under these circumstance." He complained. Melanie huffed, and walked past him, gesturing for him to follow.

Crue growled to himself, but followed after the more annoying twin. In his opinion. He followed her past the bar, close to the storage room. Crue could vaguely remember going in there during the night out a few days ago.

There was a second door not too far off, which Melanie entered. Crue followed after her, and let out a low whistle at what he saw. It appeared to be a small dojo, with a few training dummies. It also contained a second twin, who was rapidly jabbing one of the dummies.

"Ha! Ha! Hiyah!" Miltia finished off her regimen with a kick to the dummies head. The head wobbled violently, but stayed attached to the body. The girl huffed, before turning to the door. Miltia blinked in surprise, seeing the two standing there.

"How long have you been there?" She asked, putting a fist on her hip. Crue noted that she was not in her usual red get up, but was instead in a pair of grey sweats and a red tanktop.

"Long enough to fear for my head." Crue answered. When the silence followed, he sighed and placed a finger against his forehead. "This one…"

"Oh." Both girls said. "Well, you should fear for your other one too, if you annoy us." Melanie smirked, walking over to what appeared to be a small wardrobe. Crue crossed his legs instinctively, but sent a glare to Melanie anyway.

Hearing the other twin chuckle caused Crue to turn his head with a look that said ' _really?'_ towards Miltia.

"What?" She defended. "It was funny." Crue sighed, and turned back to Melanie, yelping as he ducked under something flying towards him.

"WILL YOU STOP TRYING TO KILL ME FOR FIVE SECONDS?!" Crue exclaimed at the white twin. Melanie frowned, before pointing to what she had thrown at him.

The Faunus turned, seeing that it was the mechanism for his claws. "Oh." He turned back to Melanie. "I'm not apologising." He bent down to pick up his claws, examining them for damages. "I don't even remember taking these off."

"We found them in our room." Miltia told Crue, as he shrugged off his leather jacket. "They were under our bed."

Crue hesitated in putting on the contraption, trying to figure out why they were there. " _Oh. Right. We did the nasty."_ The Faunus continued arming himself, slipping the armoured bag that held the pressurised air onto his back.

He slipped the gauntlets onto his arm, his hand wrapping around the trigger. He brought his arms up to look at cool blue metal.

 _ ***snkt***_

Crue smirked, seeing the reflection of himself in the sharp blades. "It's good to have these back." He looked up to Miltia, seeing the girl wearing a small blush.

"I should not be as turned on as I am right now." The other claw user said. Crue blinked in surprise, and turned to her twin in surprise. Melanie had her hand resting against her face, looking fed up with her sister.

"Miltia. Just train him." The white garbed girl sighed, turning around to exit. Crue turned back to Miltia, whose red face looked more embarrassed now than anything.

"So…" Crue said, breaking the silence. Miltia looked up with a raised eyebrow. Crue raised his hands, his claws glinting in the light of the dojo. "Wanna give me some tips?"

…

"Specialist Schnee." A tall woman with white hair in a bun turned to see who had called her.

"Courier Lowenthal." The woman gave a small smile. "Good to see you're recovering." The man before her had somewhat dark skin, and an unremarkable face. Under his arm he held his helmet, a cross between a generic soldiers helmet and a gasmask with red lenses.

"Thank you, Specialist Schnee. It'll take more than two bullets to here to get me down." Lowenthal tapped the side of his forehead, smiling.

"Please, call me Winter. We've been colleagues long enough to warrant that." Winter instructed the courier.

"Very well, Winter." Lowenthal smirked, reaching into his long duster. He extracted a letter in a light blue envelope with a snowflake insignia printed on it. "Letter from your sister." He handed her the envelope, and grabbed his helmet with both hands.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, Winter." He put on the helmet, and cracked his joints. "I need to go find a fellow called Benny." He growled, spinning on his foot and walking away from the Specialist.

Winter saw a glint of steel on Lowenthals hip, and recognised it as his revolver, one he affectionately called 'Lucky'. " _I suppose he must be quite lucky to survive to shots to the head. Or perhaps he is simply thick skulled."_

Winter turned the envelope over in her hand, checking the seal. She briefly considered going back to her stationed room to read it, but decided that such an oddly quick reply warranted sooner examination.

She opened the letter and folded the envelope in half, disposing of the blue paper in a recycling receptacle. She unfolded the letter and began to read. She hummed the words to herself as she walked on, her legs automatically bringing her to her room.

She had entered her room just as she was nearing the end of the letter. Her room was rather sparse, barely any decorations aside from those of a military kind. However, on her table lay a small bowl filled with bright red apples.

Winter grabbed one and took a bite out of it, just as she finished the letter. " _Hold on."_ Winter halted in her chewing, seeing the words 'P.S' standing out. She swallowed, and continued to read.

The apple fell from her hand, rolling across the wooden floor. With a flurry, Winter exited the room, heading to Intelligence. She threw open the door, startling the lone worker, who fell off his swivel chair, his small box of noodles spilling onto the floor.

"S-Specialist Schnee! What's wrong?!" The man on the floor stammered out, managing to stand and give a shaky salute.

"Technical Officer Stark. I believe there may be a breach in our security. I need you to research a name." Winter explained quickly. This got the man's full attention. He sat down on the chair before a wall of screens, and hovered his hands over the keyboard.

"Name?" He asked.

"Crue Cullen." Winter spoke. The mans fingers flew across the keyboard, inputting the name into the militaries database. After a short moment, the results that popped up surprised both viewers.

"Only one?" Stark frowned at the computer. He clicked on the link regardless, and in another window, what appeared to be a news report popped up. "Three students of Beacon stop White Fang plot."

Winter frowned slightly. So he was a Beacon student, she was aware of that much. Weiss was friends and classmates with him. "Wait a minute." Winter turned to the Stark, who was staring at a picture on the report.

The picture showed three people, students of Beacon if Winter was to assume. Two of them were Faunus, two were wearing sunglasses, and two were brunettes. "I feel like I recognise him from somewhere."

Winter stared at the male in the picture. Blonde. Wolf Faunus. Mirrored sunglasses. It was definitely the description Weiss had given her. It was definitely Crue Cullen.

Stark closed out of the report window, and opened up a folder on his desktop. The folder was labelled 'Breach Footage'. There were several more folders in it, each of them labelled 'A-Knight' followed by a serial number.

"Let's see, it was…" He moved the cursor across the screen, before stopping on one file in particular. "1337." He opened the folder, and clicked on the video file. The file showed the first person view of an Atlesian Knight.

Winter watched for a while, before the video suddenly jumped. The Schnee noticed Stark clicking along the time footage, apparently searching for something. "No. No. No. N-There!" He played the video, and sat back and watched.

Winter watched too, as a person on a motorbike hit a ramp, raised their sword, and decapitated a King Taijitu in one swing. "Haha!" Stark cried out. "I knew I recognised him from somewhere. He's got quite the fanbase with the staff."

"Are there any other files of him?" Winter asked. Stark hummed for a moment, before exiting out of the video and folder. "I think I remember seeing him in… 54V3." He clicked open the folder and file, and began searching through it once more.

"There he is." Crue had appeared on screen, jumping in front of the two droids in order to send a Boarbatusk flying. He turned back to face the robots, and gave them a thumbs up. The screen shifted, now showing another Knight.

The screen turned back to Crue, and the robots preformed the same gesture. The Faunus laughed lightly, and rested his weapon on his shoulder. " _Man."_ His voice came through the speakers. " _You guys are pretty human. Maybe you can give Penny some tips."_

Winter froze. "Replay that." She instructed. Stark did as told, and replayed the scene. Winters eyes widened as she realised she did not mishear the Faunus.

"Thank you Stark. I, I need to speak with the General." Winter stood straight and left the room, turning back to her room immediately.

Stark watched her go, and closed the door before turning back the mass of computers. A hand reached up to scratch at a black goatee. "Huh." He checked the door was closed, before exiting out of the files he had open.

He clicked on a file on his desktop, and the entire screens turned to blue. The computers did not crash, merely it was the size of the blue print that Stark had opened that required the use of every screen.

"Hmm." Stark leaned back in his chair. "Crue Cullen, and Aurel Stark." He gazed upon the blueprints, which detailed what appeared to be a robot, but with a hollow inside. "Maybe one day we'll cross paths."

"Maybe one day I'll get to build my suit. And then, you can meet… FE-MALE." There was a small pause where the name echoed around the enclosed room. Then, a sigh.

"I need to work on the name."

* * *

 _Did I just put Tony Stark, and The Courier in my fic? You're damn right I did._ _Will Crue eventually meet either of these people? Fuck if I know, that's up to you. But anyway, Crue is slowly getting better. He'll be back to badass in no time._

 _And hey, if he ever needs to be badass in a pinch, he just needs to put on the glasses. And he knows that. But he knows that doing that will be relinquishing control of himself. Can he bring himself to that?_

 _Ok, stepping away from philosophical junk for a moment. Everything that happens has a reason. And everything has a reaction. Crue jokingly telling those to Robots to aid Penny? Anyone watching that now knows he knows about Penny. Jokingly telling Weiss to say hi to Winter? Now Weiss knows he knows Winter. Really, Crue should just stop making jokes._

 _Crue has got his claws back, and just in time for his outing with Qrow and CRDL. So many bird themes in one place. How will he survive? And what will he find in the town of Mentis. These questions and more, could be answered._

 _If you have any questions yourself, ask them. Anyway, hope you enjoyed. If you did let me know, leave a review if you want. And as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	25. Down The Rabbit Hole

"Alright, you guys ready to go or what?" Qrow scratched his chin as he looked at the five students before him. Team CRDL and Crue were stood in Ozpins office before the headmaster himself, Professor Goodwitch and Qrow Branwen.

"Yes, Professor." Cardin nodded. Crue gave a small snigger when Qrow's face morphed into a small scowl.

"Ugh. Don't call me that. Makes me feel old." The hunter complained. "Like Professor Goodwitch her-huk!" Qrows necklace jerked forward, briefly glowing purple as it choked the man.

The group of males glanced at each other, seeing Qrow rub his neck. "Ugh. Yeah. Let's get going before I get strangled." He moved away from the blonde professor, and the group of five entered the elevator.

The small space was quite cramped with the six people jammed into it. An annoying jingle began to sound as the elevator moved downwards. The tension grew so thick you could cut it with a knife.

When the elevator finally reached the ground floor, the group exited quickly, Sky taking several shallow breaths. "What's up with him?" Qrow raised an eyebrow.

Dove walked over and pat his teammates back. "He doesn't do good in enclosed spaces." He explained.

"He's got claustrophobia?" Crue asked. The others turned to look at him oddly. "What?" He asked.

"There's a name for it?" Sky looked up to Crue.

"Yeah. Did you not know it?" The Faunus responded with a raised eyebrow.

"No. I just figured that it wasn't a big thing, that it was just me." He stood up fully, taking a final deep breath. "I'm good now." He waved off any more concern.

"Alright. Now that we all know the blue ones scared of small spaces." Qrow turned and walked to the entrance of the building. "Let's hurry up and get out of here."

The group exited the building, walking out in a rather unorganised manner. It was as Crue turned to ask Russel something, that he knocked shoulders with someone. "Hey!" Crue complained.

The Faunus turned to see a man slightly shorter than him with dark grey hair and bristling moustache. "Watch where you're going!" The man warned Crue, his green eyes looking upon the student with disdain.

Crue, to the surprise of the group watching, simply nodded. "Sure. I'll be careful not to get in the way of you or your freaky moustache ever again." The man's eyes widened as his lips turned into a snarl.

"Listen you-" The strange man in the grey coat stepped forward, and Crue instantly did the same, his steely blue eyes drilling into the man's olive ones.

" **Try me.** " He dared the man. The man's moustache bristled as he backed down under Crue's dangerous gaze.

"Hmph." He turned on his heel, walking away from Crue and into the building.

Crue gave him a two fingered salute as he turned back to the others seeing them all, minus Qrow, staring at him. "What? He was a cunt."

"He's not wrong." Russel nodded. "But, do you know who that was?"

"Not a fucking clue." The Faunus replied happily.

"That was Arthur Watts. He's one of the lead manufacturers of Scrolls and their programming." Sky answered.

"Oh." Crue blanked. " _Weird OC of yours?"_ He thought. "Guess I probably shouldn't have taken his then, huh?" The Faunus held up his hand, showing a Scroll with brown edges that were accented with gold.

"You took his scroll?" Cardin hushed in a frenzied voice. "When did you manage that?"

"When he bumped into me. I was gonna give it back and say he dropped it. _Then_ , it turned out he was a dick. So, kept it." Crue shrugged, checking the Scroll in more detail.

"How do you-" "Hey!" The conversation was interrupted by Qrow, who had continued walking after Crue bumped into Watts. "What's the hold up?"

The group of students all looked at each other, Crue pocketing the scroll. "Nothing." Dove answered. "We were just, talking about Scrolls."

The hunter rolled his eyes. "Course. You kids and your new Scrolls." He paused, then shuddered, apparently noticing how elderly he sounded. "Never mind. The sooner we get there the better." He began to walk away once more.

"Why the rush?" Cardin called, following after the Hunter.

"Because." Qrow held up a finger. "It's an important mission. And, if my nieces find out that I was here without them knowing I'd never hear the end of it." Crue nodded slightly, imagining how Ruby and Yang would react if they saw Qrow.

The group of six headed towards the docking bay, where a humming Bullhead was waiting for them. " _Aw shit."_ Crue thought, remembering how he now felt about flying. Still, he joined the others on the Bullhead, feeling like a stone just settled in his stomach.

The Bullhead started to rise, before heading southwest, past the Vale borders and in the opposite direction of Mountain Glenn. "You alright Crue? You're looking a little pale." Crue heard the question, and turned to look at the one who asked it.

Russel was staring at the Faunus' face with a slightly concerned look. Crue opened his mouth to reply, but closed it almost immediately. He forced down what was going to come up, and answered. "You know the way Sky's scared of small spaces?"

He, as well as anyone who was listening, nodded. "Yeah well, I recently developed a fear of flying. A fear of Bullheads specifically."

"Recently?" The mohawked teen asked. Crue nodded.

"Yep. Remember that big White Fang thing a while ago I stopped with Coco and Velvet?" He asked.

"I heard about that." Qrow piped up with a smirk. "Apparently you sent them running with their tails between their legs."

"Yeah." Crue chuckled. "In some cases, literally." The four other students got a small laugh out of that, including Cardin, who looked annoyed at himself for laughing.

"But anyway, I hijacked one of their Bullheads. _Then_ , I realised I didn't know how to fly a Bullhead." Crue explained. "And I sorta… crashed it."

"You crashed a Bullhead?" Russel asked incredibly. Crue nodded. "How did you survive?"

"I didn't feel like dying." Crue frowned slightly. "Almost did though, the pilots door fell on me." This sentence caused Qrow to begin coughing, struggling to swallow the alcohol he had just drank from his flask.

"The pilot door of a Bullhead fell on you?!" The grizzled hunter turned round to stare at the door of the Bullhead they were currently in. "How the Hell did you get out?"

"I opened the door." Crue answered with a grin. "Scared the living shit out of Coco and Velvet though." He subconsciously rubbed the shoulder where he had been hit. Repeatedly.

"You're a tough son of a gun I'll give you that." Qrow chuckled. "Anyway, now that we've had our little bonding moment. Guess I should explain what you'll be doing in Mentis." The students all stood a little straighter, preparing to listen to their instructions.

"Mentis is a small town, a good way from Vale. It hasn't got that much technology, and everyone who ever goes there always comes back, different." Qrow explained.

"So why are we going there?" Dove asked.

"Because, this time no one came back." The hunter explained, his face turning into a frown. The students all looked to each other unsurely. "We've lost all contact with a hunter, and they haven't been heard from since."

"So, it's a search and rescue?" Sky questioned the hunter.

"Could be. Could also be a search and destroy." Qrow looked to his flask, before putting it away. "It's a village on the outside of Vale, so Grimm is always a possibility. But, we can't rule out foul play."

This got the others attention. "Foul play? You mean like, murder?" Russel asked in a hushed voice. Qrow grimly nodded.

"That's crazy." Cardin suddenly spoke up. "Why would anyone kill a hunter, they're here to help people!"

"Not everyone sees it like that, kid." Qrow grumbled. "Where there are Grimm, there are Hunters to stop them. Problem is, some people see it the other way round. They think the Grimm follow the Hunters, and are treated no better than the Grimm themselves."

"Is Mentis like that?" Crue asked, gripping onto the railing of the Bullhead.

"Hard to tell." Qrow frowned. "They welcome Hunters like they're heroes, but about a week after, they get the boot and are treated like dirt."

"You sure that's not just because they messed up?" Russel asked. "Like, they pissed off the villagers or something?"

"It's a possibility." Qrow nodded. "But I don't think that it's that high of a chance. It's more likely that the villagers are just putting on an act."

"That's a bit, pessimistic don't you think?" Sky said awkwardly.

"Pessimist is the way to go, man." Crue hummed. "You're either always right, or pleasantly surprised."

"Huh. An optimistic look on pessimism. Don't see that every day." Russel looked to the Faunus with an amused expression.

Qrow gave a huff, but smirked slightly. "Alright, well we're almost there. We're gonna have to be dropped a bit away from the town, so we don't cause that much of a commotion."

Crue looked out of the side of the Bullhead, seeing that they were approaching a small clearing in an evergreen forest. The flying vehicle lowered down, bending some of the trees with the force of its exhaust.

"Hope you've got a landing strategy." Qrow called over the roar of the Bullhead, as he smirked, and stepped backwards, falling from the vehicle.

Crue shook his head with a smile. "Show off." He peeked downwards once more, seeing the distance from the Bullhead to the ground. "Alright, let's go." The Faunus jumped from the Bullhead, landing in a crouched position, hands digging into the dirt.

" _That's… weird."_ Crue brought a hand up to inspect the ground below him. " _Is that… ash?"_ A shuddering sensation ran through the ground, as Crue stood and turned around, seeing that Cardin had landed.

"Took you a while." A voice commented. Qrow stood off to the side, leaning against a tree. He moved towards the group, hands in his pockets and his sword on his back. "The town is West of here, so we're gonna find it there unless-"

A sudden sound of a branch breaking caused the group to grip onto their weapons. "Unless something finds us first." Dove muttered. The six males stood at the ready, forming a circle with their backs to one another.

Crue scanned the line of trees before him, holding out Setanta in its sword form. On one side of him was Russel, and on the other was Cardin. " _I'd prefer to be stuck with Russel over Cardin any day. Least the dude is chill."_

Another snap of a branch, and something entered the clearing with amazing speed, heading straight for them. Instincts kicked in as Crue shifted Setanta back into a hurl, and jerked it to the side.

The only thing Cardin saw was a flash of blue, and a sword clashing against it. Crue strained under the weight of the sword, but growled and shoved back. As he pushed, he felt the weight of the sword disappear.

His eyes landed back to where he saw the 'something' emerged. His eyes widened as he saw what, or rather, who it was. A woman, with fiery red hair in a ponytail, and equally fiery hazel eyes. "Hm." The woman said, somewhat impressed as she placed her long sniper rifle with a blade as part of the muzzle on her back.

"Not bad, I'm surprised you stopped my bla-" "GOOD GOD PUT SOME FUCKING CLOTHES ON WOULD YOU!" Qrow exclaimed, covering Dove and Sky's eyes his hands. The woman wore what could barely be classified as swimwear.

A deep black bikini with flame designs was all that covered her torso. She wore what was possibly the shortest pair of shorts Crue had ever seen, held up by a single pink studded belt. The woman's face turned as red as her hair as she stared at Qrow with wide eyes.

"Wait." Crue held out a hand, silencing both parties. "Do I know you from somewhere?" The question surprised everyone, including the girl.

"Where would you kno-" "Shhshhshhut the fuck up." Crue waved off Qrows question. "What's your name?"

"Uh, I'm Sunny. Sunny Marina?" The redhead answered, looking at Crue sceptically. " _Name is a bit of a contradiction, but it matches the rule."_ The Faunus thought. " _I know I know her, but… from where?"_

"Is no one going to question why she's wearing barely anything?" Qrow complained.

"Bitch please." Crue turned to face the hunter. "If it was a skirt you'd be on the ground. Probably looking up it."

Qrow's face turned into a snarl. "Skirts are God's gift to man, it's like being able to looking inside a present on Winter Hearts Eve. You know you're not allowed, but you do it anyway."

All those in the clearing looked to Qrow with varying expressions of either disgust or realisation. "Oh my God. You've got a skirt fetish." Crue began to laugh. "Oh, that explains so much."

"You're one to talk, Mr. Twin Fetish." Qrow rebutted, jabbing a finger at the Faunus.

"That's not a fetish! That was a coincidence." Crue defended.

"Alright then, I concede." Qrow held up his hands, palms pointed at Crue. "You've got a fetish for girls with questionable morals."

Crue held up a finger to disagree, and would have liked nothing more than to do so, before lowering his finger as he realised the slight truth to that statement.

"Polly?" Russel questioned quietly. Crue's head fell, as Qrow began to laugh.

"Haha! Oh, I didn't think I was right there! Haha!" The man wiped a tear from his eye, as Crue growled. Without warning, he lunged for the man, discarding his weapon. The two males began to get into a tussle, an obnoxiously large dust cloud obscuring their actions to outside viewers.

Cardin sighed and walked over to Sunny, his team following him. The redhead watched cautiously with a raised eyebrow. "About those two…" The leader made to apologise, turning back to watch the two fighting huntsmen. "Yeah…"

"It's fine." Sunny shrugged. "Sorry about attacking you."

"Yeah, could you explain that please." Dove requested.

"I saw a bunch of people with weapons and armour jump from a plane near my town. Better safe than sorry. Do you blame me?" The redhead asked.

Sky made a tweaking motion with his hand, waving it in a 'kinda' fashion. He received an elbow from Russel for his actions. "So, you mentioned your town? Is that Mentis?"

"Yeah, why?" The redheaded sniper raised an eyebrow.

"We're supposed to go there for our mission." Cardin informed. "We're supposed to be tailing…." The group turned to face Crue and Qrow, the latter holding the former in a headlock.

"Ooh, that's a bad move." Russel grimaced.

"Really? Why?" Sunny asked. "Seems like a good way to restra-" "GAH!" The newcomer turned her attention back to the fight, seeing Crue had elbowed Qrow in between his ribs, and was now pressing his face into the dirt.

"Yeah, he always gets out of headlocks." Russel told Sunny. "I remember one time him and Cardin were fighting-" "Ahem!" Cardin coughed roughly, cutting off Russels story.

"Anyway." The leader glared at his mohawked teammate, who kicked at dirt on the ground. "Is there someone in charge of the town we could talk to?" He asked Sunny.

"Yeah, there's a mayor you can talk to. He actually left not too long after me. I think." Sunny cocked her head to the side, trying to recall something.

Cardin turned to his team, and looked at them all, evaluating them. "Russel. Go break them up." He gestured to Crue and Qrow, both of them currently glaring at each other and trying to choke the other out.

Russel sighed, and raised one of his daggers to point in between the two. He rotated his dust chambers to a bright white, and swung. A small arc of light blue burst forth from his weapon, hitting the ground beneath the two.

A short wall of ice sprung up from where the dust hit, separating the two involuntarily. Both males turned to stare at Russel, who gestured a thumb behind him to Sunny. "We need to get going. There are Grimm around here you know."

"Yeah, I know." Qrow grunted, standing straight. "Good tussle." He said, punching Crue in the shoulder. The Faunus' mouth opened wide in pain as he made several motions indicating what he thought of Qrow's heritage.

" _Why that shoulder!?"_ He questioned within his mind. " _Why is it even still sore?!"_ He groaned, following after the hunter. The group faced Sunny, who looked at them all before nodding and turning around, back the way she came.

Crue's hand gripped Russels chin as he angled it upward. "Aw." THe green haired teen complained. The Faunus rolled his eyes as he kept walking after the sniper.

" _Where do I know her from?"_ He tried to think. " _She's not anyone I've met personally that's for sure. I'd remember that."_ Crue thought back to his old life, remembering all those that he met during his time.

However, with the memories that came from his previous life, came the knowledge that he would never return there, or be able to return. " _Motherfucker. Can't I have one day without feeling depressed?"_

His ears twitched, as he heard the sound of branches breaking in the distance. "Hold up." He said, holding up a hand on concentrating on the sound.

"What's going on?" Russel asked.

"Why is Russel staring at the sky?" Sky asked. Crue frowned, and listened.

"Someone's coming. I can hear them." He focused on the direction of the sound, as the others readied their weapons. Extremely shallow breaths came from the direction of the noise. "They sound out of breath."

At this, Sunny appeared to relax and lower her weapon. " _Sniper rifle. Who uses a sniper rifle? Ruby does. Your one in the tournament with the hat does."_ The noise came closer, and Crue's grip on his hurley tightened.

A portly man appeared from the brush, panting heavily. He wore a waistcoat with a deep red bowtie under a red suit jacket. "Sunny! Don't run off like that!" The man bent over, hands clutching his knees which were covered by grey trousers.

"Sorry Mr. Alba. I thought they might have been White Fang." The name of the terrorist organisation caused the Hunters to tense.

The man frowned, straightening himself and wiggling his great white moustache. "Yes, well," He fixed his small glasses at the end of his nose, bright pink eyes staring at the hunters. "As you can see, these good people are not White Fang."

His gaze lingered a little while on Crue, causing the boy to raise an eyebrow. "My name is Kanin Alba. I am the mayor of Mentis." He turned to Crue, staring the Faunus in the eye. "It's nice to see another Faunus around here."

At these words, Alba took off a rather large top hat, and revealed a pair of white rabbit ears. Crue blinked in surprise, but said nothing. He noticed Cardin tensing beside him. "Say anything and I drop you." Crue whispered to the bully.

"Now." Alba smiled, reaching into his pocket. "I think it's best we all get back to Mentis- OH BY MY WHISKERS!" He exclaimed, staring at a pocket watch he had taken out. "WE'RE LATE!" He took off immediately, leaving a cloud of dust in his wake.

Crue could still hear the man panting as he ran away, but his mind was wandering around, not focusing on the mayor himself. " _White rabbit… I wonder if he has any relation to Velvet. Wait. Was it racist to think that? I hope not."_

"We should probably get going too. Don't want to be stuck around here when it gets dark." Sunny told them, walking in the same direction of the mayor. The others nodded, sheathing their weapons and following the woman.

Crue tilted Russels head up once more. "I wasn't looking that time, I swear." He muttered.

"Sure you weren't." Crue nodded sarcastically. The Faunus made sure to look anywhere but the redheads rear, mostly focusing on her ponytail, trying to figure out how he knew her.

" _I can't think of any fairy tale with someone like that."_ Crue sighed, mentally preparing himself for whatever the town of Mentis had to offer. " _We've got a missing Huntsman. Grimm, White Fang, and a really bad feeling in my gut."_

He reached into the breast pocket of his shirt to take out his flask and have a drink. " _Let's see how deep this rabbit hole goes."_ Crue's eyes widened, as he choked down the liquid. " _MOTHERFUCKER WAS THE RABBIT FROM ALICE IN WONDERLAND!"_

" _Oh my god this town is gonna be all kinds of fucked up isn't it."_ Crue considered whacking his head against a tree, hoping that he would wake up and be back at Beacon. Instead of possibly giving himself brain damage, he sighed.

" _Well, at least all the actions gonna be focused here. Nothing bad should happen while I'm away."_ Crue hesitated for a moment, before taking a long breath and pinching his nose. " _I just jinxed it, didn't I."_

…

"Doctor Watts, it is a pleasure to meet you." Professor Goodwitch nodded to the tall man with a dark grey moustache.

"Likewise, Professor." Watts nodded. He lightly tugged on his grey overcoat, before looking around. "I trust that you were informed as to my reason for being here?"

"Yes, Ironwood called ahead and told me to greet you here. I apologise that he is unable to meet you personally, but apparently he has some very important business with his Specialist." Goodwitch informed the man, walking towards the CCT tower.

"Well, the man is a general. I'm sure the business is very important. Now, to make things safer around here." The two adults entered the CCT, the elevator ride up to the computer room unnervingly quiet.

"Remind me again why Ozpin wished to increase digital security? I would have thought he'd be more concerned with physical security for the Vytal festival. Is that not why there are countless Atlesian flagships?" Watts asked.

"There was a break in to the CCT not too long ago. During a time where most of the staff were unable to stop it." Goodwitch frowned, apparently annoyed at her lack of action.

"A break in. I would've thought Ironwoods security could have staved off any intruder." The man smirked, lightly fiddling with his moustache.

"Hm. Yes, I thought the same." The blonde professor shook her head, as the elevator exited to the computer room of the CCT. "However, a student was able to hold off the two intruders. But, Ozpin believed that because they attacked the CCT, they were attempting to implant some form of virus."

"I see. Well, my new _anti-_ virus will be sure to hold off any attempt to breach digital security." Watts smirked confidently, sitting down at the main terminal. "I'm quite proud of the name you know."

As she was standing behind Watts, Glynda took the opportunity to roll her eyes. "Really? What is the name?"

"Well, I thought of it while on a ship, so I called it _Avast_. It also throws viruses overboard, if you will." The Doctor reached into his pocket to retrieve his scroll. "Hold on a moment." He checked his other pocket.

"What is the problem, Doctor?" Goodwitch asked with a raised eyebrow.

"My blasted Scroll is missing." Watts said angrily. "Where the Devil did it-" He stopped in his tracks, recalling bumping into a student earlier. "That little- ugh." The man's fist clenched, the fabric of his gloves straining.

"I fear my scroll may have been stolen." Watts said through gritted teeth.

Goodwitch's eyes widened, as she instantly took out her own scroll. "I can call for a replacement immediately, and have a search started." Instead of agreeing, Watts held up a hand.

"No. It is fine. I have it saved on my Dust Cloud." Watts turned back to the terminal, and instantly opened up the FireDustFox browser. "I can download it from there, and it will still have the same effect."

"I see." Goodwitch nodded, lowering her scroll. "What about the search for your Scroll?"

"Do not call anyone. I will get my Scroll back myself." Watts frowned, typing rapidly. "I am not fond of failure."

There was silence in the room for a short moment, the only sound the clicking of Watts on the keyboard. "I hope you had a password." Goodwitch commented idly.

At this, Watts smirked. "Of course I did. And unless the person that stole my Scroll knows me as well as my own mother, I doubt they'll get in."

…

" _1, 2, 3, 4. Nope. Maybe it's five digits. 9, 2, 8, 8, 7. Nope. Alright, time for random numbers. 7, 2, 5, 3, 6. No- Oh hey it worked."_ Crue looked at the opened Scroll screen, seeing it as a normal Scroll. " _Can't wait to snoop on this guy."_

Crue pocketed the Scroll, now knowing the passcode. The group had arrived at Mentis a short while ago, and to Crue's pleasure, it was not a topsy turvy brightly coloured town. It was rather dull, in his opinion.

"So we're staying at a random Inn?" Crue asked.

"Yeah. What you expect, the Four Maidens?" Qrow chuckled. Crue looked at the huntsman with a gobsmacked expression, before Russel elbowed him.

"It's a really fancy hotel in Atlas." He whispered to the Faunus. The Faunus groaned at the realisation. " _Four Maidens, Four Seasons. I swear to god, you're terrible with this."_

"Russel, if I ever see another pun, or some word or brand that annoys me, hit me over the head." Crue requested.

"Uh, sure?" The mohawked boy agreed unsurely. The group of six followed Sunny, who apparently knew the town like the back of her hand.

"-there's the shop." She said, pointing to random buildings. "The armoury. The psychiatrist. The Hookah café."

"The what?" Sky asked.

"Hookah." Sunny repeated. "It's like a really big vase that you smoke from."

"Smoke what?" Crue questioned. "That was the wrong question to ask wasn't it?" He realised, when the group turned to stare at him.

"Most anything I guess." Sunny shrugged. "The first one was brought here by a guy called Felix Pillar. And they became really popular."

The sniper shrugged, and turned around, causing the group to follow her. "I hope you guys know you're not gonna be taking it easy here. First thing tomorrow, split into pairs and survey the town." Qrow told the students.

"I call Russel." Crue instantly stated. When the other males turned to look at him, he explained. "What? I wanna show him my music. And see what he's got." Russel smiled widely as he nodded, throwing an arm around Crue's neck.

Crue resisted the immediate impulse to flip Russel onto his back. "Alright, I can do that." The green teen said. Qrow rolled his eyes.

"Fine, you two can check the perimeter for any Grimm." He shrugged. The group continued walking, discussing what they would be doing tomorrow.

The hairs on Crue's neck stood up, and he turned to where he felt as though someone was staring at him. He found no one looking at him immediately, but noticed the curtains behind a window waving slightly, as though they had just been pulled shut.

" _The fuck. What building did Sunny say that was?"_ Crue wondered, looking at the dulled blue wood. There was a small sign above it, reading 'Almost'. " _Well that's not fucking ominous at all."_

He turned to ask Sunny what the building was and who it belonged to, but he stopped as he saw the construction ahead. "And this, is the inn you'll be staying at." Sunny smiled happily.

Crue took a deep breath, and turned to Russel. "Russel. Remember the thing I told you earlier, about words and puns?"

"Uh, yeah, why?" The teen asked, looking between Crue and the Inn's name.

"Do it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I'm sure."

Russel sighed, but raised his hand. "Alright. But I don't get why you want me to hit you because of the Inns name." He moved his hand rapidly towards Crue's head.

"It's only called _Wonderland._ "

* * *

 _Woo Hoo! Another chapter! Bout time huh. Sorry about the lack of updates, but college has got me down. So, who is introduced this chapter. A redhead sniper with very little clothing. Hm, who does that remind you of? (_ _Row Row Fight The Power)_

 _Crue ends up in 'Wonderland' and has ran into Watts. Keep in mind, Crue hasn't seen V4, and just assumes that Watts is an OC of the Author. And now he has access to Watts personal Scroll. Shouldn't that be fun. (Bonus points if you figured out the password)_

 _Hmm. Anything else I need to mention…. Oh yeah! A question occurred to me a while ago, that I thought you guys would like answering._

 _Crue. What Hogwarts house would he be in? If you've got specific reasons as to which let me know. Idk why I thought of that. Maybe the fact I was bingewatching the whole series a little why ago. (That's also another reason this took so long. Sorry)_

 _So, with all that is said and done, I hope you enjoyed, leave a review if you did, and as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	26. Please Drink Me

"I think you hit him too hard." Sky said, watching as Crue continuously whacked his head against the wall of the inn room the group were staying in.

"Nah, he does that all the time. I think." Russel dissuaded. The four students weren't quite sure why the Faunus was inflicting such amounts of self-harm. The only thing of note that happened was the meeting of the innkeepers.

Twins. Named Dee Tweedle, and Dum Tweedle. They ran the inn well, but from what the group had seen they were constantly contradicting each other.

Apparently, this was reason enough for Crue to have Russel strike him again. "Just ignore him." Cardin turned to Qrow. "Sunny said there were White Fang here, are we gonna go after them."

The hunter rolled his eyes. "She didn't say there were White Fang 'here', kid. She thought we were White Fang, that's all."

Cardin gave a scoff. "Like we'd associate with terrorists." His eyes wandered over to the Faunus banging his head against the wall.

"I can tell you're looking at me jackass." Crue mumbled.

"Anyway." Qrow cut across. "For now, we just have to find out what we can about the Hunter that went missing."

"You haven't actually told us anything about who we're looking for." Dove spoke up.

"Yeah, how do we know who we're looking for if you don't tell us anything?" Cardin questioned, crossing his arms and staring at the Huntsman.

Qrow sighed and rolled his eyes. He reached into his pocket and took out his scroll. "I was gonna show it when Brighteyes over there asked, no need to be a jerk about it."

"Don't have any pictures of them, but they're a combat medic." He opened his notes section, and began to read. "5'4. Female. Black hair. Black tail-" "Tail?!" Cardin cut across.

"For the love of- Yes a tail!" Qrow repeated angrily. "In case you haven't noticed, Faunus exist, and they can be Huntsman." He gestured to Crue for emphasis.

"Not a good example right now." Crue responded, while continuing to hit his head against the wall.

Qrow sighed, and rubbed his hand against his face. "You kids really don't know a thing about being Huntsmen."

"We're looking for a Faunus, and that shouldn't make you expend less effort." Qrow stared at Cardin. "She's a damn good Huntsman too. And she could probably take you apart and put you together backwards. Field medic."

Cardin grinded his teeth together as he stared at the older man. "Do we have a name?" Sky asked, before Cardin could have said anything else.

"Yeah, we do. Emelia Grey." _CRACK!_ The group turned to see that Crue's head had broken through the wall in response to the name.

"Oh." Came Crue's muffled voice. "Hey. You're staying here too?" The person on the other side of the wall apparently gave some kind of reply. "Cool. Hey, you wouldn't happen to know if anyone went missing around here would you?"

The five males stared at Crue's body as he talked to the other person. "No? Do you know anyone that would know?" Crue tried to make gestures with his hands, not realising the other person couldn't see them.

"Really? Great, thanks." The Faunus attempted to pull his head out if the wall, but found himself stuck. "Uh. Guys, little help." Crue called to the group. Russel stood up and grabbed the Faunus by the shoulders, and heaved.

After a few strong tugs, Crue's head came back through the wall, his hair looking a little tussled. "Ok, found out where we can get some info." He clapped his hands together. Behind him, Russel peeked through the wall, and brought his head back instantly.

"Well, found out where Sunny stays." His cheeks were bright red, and he pointedly turned away from the wall.

"What did you find out?" Qrow asked.

"Apparently everyone in this town has the one therapist. So, if anyone would know if someone stopped showing up, it's her." Crue told them.

"Alright." Qrow rubbed his face with his palm. "Brighteyes and Claus, you two check out this therapist." Dove and Sky looked at each other, before shrugging.

"Me and Russel'll search the perimeter or some shite." Crue waved at Qrow. The hunter raised an eyebrow at the younger male. "What? We agreed on that earlier."

The older hunter nodded, before slowly turning to face Cardin. "Ah shit." Cardin seemed to share the sentiment, as his face morphed into a scowl.

"Well, seeing as it's already running late, I'm going to turn in." Qrow stood up and began to leave the room.

"By 'turn in' you mean going downstairs and drinking the place dry." Crue drawled, smirking as he noticed the hunter flinch. "Like hell you're going without me." Crue began walking to the door, only to have it slam in his face.

"Sorry kid, can't Hunters in training can't go down and drink on a mission." While the Faunus couldn't see it, he knew Qrow was wearing a grin of shit eating proportions on the other side of the door. "So, gonna have to stay here."

Crue stared at the door, his eyes pointed and full of Wrath. He fully considered using his claws to punch his way through the door, but eventually decided otherwise. "You're buying me a drink when we get back."

It wasn't a request, and apparently even Qrow could sense that. "You find what we need and I'll buy you two." The man chuckled. He began walking away, the group inside the room hearing the steps fade away.

"Well," Crue turned back to the four other males, grabbing his pocket watch and checking the time. "We've got two hours before midnight. Wanna drink?" He asked.

"But, he just said we can't go down and drink." Sky raised an eyebrow. Crue nodded in agreement.

"You're right. He said we can't go down." He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out his hip flask. "He said nothing about drinking up here."

…

A few moments later, Crue had a shot glass lined up before each male, Cardin included. He took out his flask, and was about to pour the whiskey in, before he had a thought. He stood up and walked to the hole in the wall, poking his head through.

"Hey, Sunny." The muffled voice of the Faunus came through the thin walls. Sunny gave some form of reply. "We're having a little drink in here, care to join?" There was silence for a moment, before Crue seemed to nod.

"Grand. I'll open the door now." The Faunus tried to pull himself back out of the hole. "Uhh. Do you mind?" A short moment later, Crue's head, along with a feminine hand was pushed through the hole, causing him to stumble backwards.

"Thanks." He spoke, and then opened the door. A short moment later Sunny appeared, wearing a pair of blue sleeping shorts with two stars on it, and an oversized orange sweater. With her she held a shot glass in one hand and a bottle of what appeared to be vodka in the other.

"Hey." She waved to the group. "I brought some of my own stuff." She handed the bottle to Crue, who looked at its label.

"You have given me alcohol." He looked back up to meet Sunny's hazel eyes. "I will now die for you."

"Cool." Sunny smiled in a joking manner. She sat down between Dove and Crue, the latter pouring her some whiskey. They all raised their glasses and clinked them against one another.

"Kanpai!"

…

"Oz, I'm telling you, I don't see anything wrong with this place." Qrow spoke to the Headmaster through his scroll. The bustle of the Inn's bar creating enough background noise for the Huntsman to have his conversation in private.

"So, you are saying that everything is normal?" Ozpin replied coolly.

"Yes, that's what I just said." Qrow grumbled, taking a drink of his beer.

"Not a thing out of place or odd?"

"No, not a thi-" Qrow cut himself off halfway. "That's what you mean… Everything is too normal. Too perfect for a small town like this?"

Ozpin smiled a small smile, as he nodded, pushing his glasses up on the bridge of his nose. "Yes Qrow. In a small town like Mentis, there must be some odd characters or strange traditions." The sound of a page flipping could be heard from Ozpin's end of the conversation.

"Yeah, yeah. I understand." Qrow slid a hand down his face, scratching at his stubble. He took another swig of his drink, and looked back to Ozpin, the man's eyes scanning something below him. "What'cha reading there Oz?"

"Hm?" The white haired man looked up. "Simply fairy tales, nothing to worry about."

Qrows eyes narrowed at the answer. "Oz. Last time you were reading 'fairy tales', we ended up with a half-dead woman in the schools basement. What ones are you looking up now?"

"Hibernian." Ozpin spoke shortly. The answer actually gave Qrow a short chuckle.

"Heh, Hibernians. Probably the only people on Remnant who could… outdrink… me…" Red eyes slowly widened as realisation dawned upon the grizzled huntsman. "Oz…" The Headmaster raised an eyebrow.

"I think Cullen is Hibernian."

…

 _"You spin me right round baby right round."_ Crue watched as the bottle of liquid spun in a circle, waiting for who it landed on to choose.

"Dove! Truth, dare, or pass." Sunny giggled, a red tinge over her cheeks. The blonde haired boy looked thoughtful for a second, before deciding.

"Truth." He answered.

Crue whispered something into Sunny's ear, who nodded and repeated it aloud. "Are you related to any of your teachers?"

Dove frowned and turned to Crue, who shrugged innocently. "Yes." He sighed. "Port is my… Uncle."

"I FUCKING KNEW IT AHAHAHA!" Crue cried out triumphantly, before falling onto his back. "Ow." He spoke briefly, before beginning to laugh again.

"How'shd you know?" Sky asked, scratching his blue haired head.

"Eyes." Crue pointed a finger to the ceiling, and then lowered it, but began to concentrate on a spot on the wood above him.

"Guess it's my turn then." Dove shrugged, grabbing the bottle and spinning. It span for a short moment, before landing on Crue. Or rather, where Crue used to be.

The Faunus was currently chuckling to himself, facing the ceiling of the room. "How'd you get up there?!" Sunny exclaimed, standing and trying to reach the male. Crue rolled onto his back, and stuck out his hand.

"It's my semblance." Crue answered, as Sunny grabbed hold of his hand. The moment the two made contact, Sunny began to fall towards the ceiling. It truly felt as though she was falling, as her centre of gravity had been reversed.

The redhead landed on Crue, causing him to give out a rough cough. The two began giggling shortly afterward. "Crue it's your turn." Sunny told him, as she was splayed across his body.

"Alright, uh, I wanna pass just for the vodka, but truth!" He cried, pointing at Dove.

The blonde hummed in thought for a moment, before looking up to Sunny and Crue. "What do you think of Sunny?" The two on the ceiling looked at each other momentarily.

"She gave me alcohol. I will die for her." Crue stated with surprising conviction.

"You said that earlier." Russel commented. The Faunus nodded in agreement.

"Yes. I would die for her then and I will die for her now." He gave Sunny a soft pat on the head, which she smiled happily in reaction to.

"Ok, but, why will you die for her? You just met her?" Dove asked.

"She brought me alcohol. What part of this is unclear?" Crue questioned back. Dove gave Crue a blank look. Well, as blank a look as one could give with slanted eyes.

"Crue…" Russel spoke slowly, causing the Faunus to sigh.

"Fiiine. But give me the bottle. Gonna need to be a lot more in me for this explanation." Crue reached a hand down, and the bottle of vodka was handed up to him. He paused for a moment, trying to figure out how to drink it upside down.

He finally managed it, taking a mouthful and swallowing. "She reminds me of my sister."

There was a silence after that, one where everyone was trying to take in his words. "You have a sister?" Cardin spoke. The team leader had been noticeably quiet for the majority of the game. The fact the bottle almost never landed on him seemed to help that.

"Had." Crue's nails bit into the wood of the ceiling that he was lying against. The room instantly understood what he meant. Sunny, the closest to Crue, attempted to hug him while upside down.

"Huh." Cardin muttered. "And here I thought we had nothing in common." Crue turned to stare at the bully.

"You have a sister?" He asked.

"Had."

Crue and Cardin stared at each other for what felt like hours. The first action to be taken was Crue slowly lowering the bottle of vodka to the team leader. Cardin took it in his hand and stared at it distastefully.

"I'm fine." He set the bottle down. "I don't feel like drinking, or explaining. But, yeah." Cardin nodded. "Same boat. Same creek. No paddle." He looked back up to Crue.

"This have anything to do with why you hate the White Fang?" The Faunus asked. The auburn haired teen looked at the ground uncomfortably. "Got it. Dropping it." Unfortunately, Crue's mention of the term 'drop', caused him to drop from the ceiling. Sunny coming down with him.

During the freefall, Crue rotated himself and Sunny so that he would hit the ground before Sunny. "AGH- FCUK!" Crue cried out, as he hit the floor, and then the red head hit him. "Pain."

"Is your reward for being near me." Sunny mumbled into Crue's chest. She looked up for a moment. "I heard that in a song once."

"Cool. Should listen to it sometime." Crue muttered out. "Ugh, what time is it? Saor-" The Faunus caught himself and swallowed. "Sunny, can you see if you can grab my scroll?" The redhead reached down and fumbled around for Crue's scroll.

"Wait I have my own." The sniper realised, instead reaching for her own and checking the time. "It's a little past midnight." The males groaned, as Cardin stood up.

"Alright, let's sleep. We probably need our energy for tomorrow, or something…" The others got up looking at the beds in the room. "Shit." Cardin murmured, once he realised there only four beds.

"Well, ceiling for me." Crue stretched his arms as he yawned. He stared the roof above him, but found himself being pulled away from it rather than to it. "I reversed my Semblance?" He questioned aloud.

"No, I'm dragging you to my room." Sunny answered, opening the door. "We're not gonna do anything weird." She said, although that seemed to be more for the benefit of the others. "You were really comfy when I was lying on you on the ceiling. I wanna see if it translates to a bed."

"That sounded weird but I am too tired to argue." Crue let himself be dragged away by the redhead. Before he was dragged out of the room, he made sure to make eye contact with Russel. Once the steely blue eyes had met those of brown, Crue nodded.

The door closed, leaving the members of team CRDL in silence. "I don't know what that meant." Russel murmured.

…

The following morning silence was broken by a series of groans from CRDL's room. "Ugh, hangovers…" Sky held a hand against his throbbing head. The students tried to orient themselves properly, sitting on the edges of their bed with their heads between their knees.

The four males heard a door creaking open, followed by a voice. "What the Hell happened to you?" Qrow stood in the doorway, staring in slight confusion at the huntsmen in training.

"We listened to Crue." Russel stood to his feet shakily.

"You drank didn't you?" Qrow realised. The nods of confirmation, followed by the groans the action caused, all but made the picture clear.

Qrow sighed. "Ok, who here is the least hungover?" The hunter asked. Cardin raised his hand. "Thank God it's the one with me." He let out a sigh of relief.

"The fucks with all the noise?" Crue appeared behind Qrow, peeking over his shoulder into the room.

"It's the repercussions of your little drinking game last night." The red eyed huntsman answered.

"How'd you know we played a drinking game?" Crue asked, before seeing Qrow turn around and stare at him. "I mean what-no what drinking game?" The Faunus took a step back smiling guiltily at the older huntsman.

"Where'd you get the drink anyway? I didn't see any of you come down." Qrow asked, genuinely curious. All eyes landed on Crue, who looked mildly peeved.

"I'd be mad and blame stereotypes but this is true." He nodded. "We got some vodka off of Sunny too." Crue jabbed a thumb at the hole in the wall. Qrow bent down to peak threw, but was stopped when the Faunus grabbed him by the collar and forced his head back up.

"What the-?" Qrow spoke in confusion, before meeting Crue's eyes. The huntsman had been around the entirety of Remnant, mostly on missions for Ozpin. But never before had he seen such anger, such **Wrath** in another mans eyes.

"Don't look in there. She's changing." He warned, releasing the hunter. Qrow stood straight, pulling at his collar slightly, meeting Crue's eyes.

Qrow lost the staredown. "Cardin. Come on. We're going to talk to the Mayor." The leader held in a complaint, recalling that the Mayor of Mentis was a rabbit Faunus. The huntsman expected the bully to voice some form of anger, and was somewhat surprised when there was no reaction.

The leader strode across the room, grabbing his mace that was leaned against a wall and swinging it onto his shoulder. He left the room without another word. Crue walked into the room and grabbed Russel by the back of his shirt.

"Alright Sonic, lessgo." The green haired boy groaned as he was dragged from the room, grabbing his daggers and sheathing them before he was lost to the world.

Sky and Dove stared at each other, the others leaving causing a very peaceful quietness. "Five more minutes?" Sky asked. Dove nodded, and the two laid down on their beds, closing their eyes to get some extra rest before going on their part of the mission.

…

"Why did you let me drink?" Russel complained, as he and Crue walked among the trees and bushes just outside of Mentis.

"Because I'm an enabler." The Faunus replied, before shivering and mumbling something along the lines of "Bad ship." Crue raised his arms and rested his head on his hands. "So, you and Sunny."

A soft blush fell across Russels face. "Called it." Crue smirked.

"You're, you're cool with it?" The mohawked teen asked in confusion. "I thought you liked her. Wasn't that what the nod was for?"

"What? No. I knew you liked her." Crue explained. "The nod was me saying 'I won't do anything cause I know you've got a thing for her'."

"And you won't do a thing cause you see her as a sister." Russel nodded. The hairs on his head stood straight as he felt a glare being directed at him. "That wasn't me insulting you or anything!" He defended. "You said it yourself! I was just repeating a fact."

Crue decided to not kill Russel for this, realising he was right. "Yeah, good point." He sighed.

"So, what did you two do last night? Just, hug or something?" Russel asked, taking out one of his daggers and checking the blade on it.

"Yeah, more or less. I tell ya, I'm not used to being the little spoon." Crue chuckled. "She must have thought I was a teddy bear or something cause she would not let go for love nor money."

Russel snorted, spinning his blade in one hand. "You're not gonna like, go Big Brother mode on me for liking her are you?" He asked. Crue waved his hand back and forth. "Great." Russel sighed.

"To be fair, I'd probably go big brother on you for liking any girl I'm close to or care for." He thought back to Beacon. "You don't like anyone back at Beacon, do you?"

Russel looked a little nervous to answer. "I, used to have a thing for… Yang." Steel blue eyes instantly bore into the side of Russels skull. "Used to!" He specified. "I sorta lost it after realising that A. There was no way she'd go for me because she thought I was a bully. And B. She's way out of my league."

Crue blinked in surprise. "Huh, you sound like me before I came here." He mused.

"Before you came to Beacon?" Russel asked.

"Sure." Crue shrugged. "Was never really one to stand out honestly. Just did what I could to survive. Managed to get by well enough, mostly by thinking I wasn't good enough to get anywhere higher. Aim low and you'll hit it."

"Damn." Russel blinked looking forward. "And I thought my backstory was depressing." He noticed Crue's raised eyebrow and sighed. "This haircut isn't a fashion choice you know. It's supposed to show my 'allegiance to my clan' or whatever."

"I was born to be a Huntsman apparently, even if I didn't want to be. Just, forced to be something I'm not." The words echoed in Crue's mind. _"Something I'm not. Something like a different species. Like a fighter. A warrior? A godamn killer of monstrous cre-"_ "Crue?"

The Faunus snapped back to reality, his Semblance almost activating accidentally causing him to think _"Whoops there goes gravity."_ He turned to face Russel, seeing a look of concern on the boys face. "Did I space out or something?"

"Or something." Russel repeated. "You looked about ready to kill something." He took a step away in precaution. "So I was kinda worried it was me."

"Nah. Well." Crue made a face like he was considering how easy it would be to kill Russel.

"Don't think about it!" The green haired male exclaimed. He dropped his head after Crue began to laugh, before perking back up and remembering something. "Hey, you said you'd show me your music right?"

"Oh yeah." Crue nodded, taking out his Scroll. "Here, let me show you some of my favourites."

…

"I am very glad you have joined us at our peaceful village." Kanin Alba nodded to Cardin and Qrow, the two hunters standing in the Mayors office, a somewhat lavish room with several clocks decorated around the room.

"You like your tics and tocs." Qrow nodded. "I think Oz'd get along with you."

"Ah, you noticed my little, collection." Alba rubbed the back of his head nervously. "It's due to an unfortunate fear of mine. Allegrophobia. Our resident therapist diagnosed me, and also gifted me with many of these fine time keeping devices."

Cardin stared at a particularly intricate looking grandfather clock. "This is Atlesian." He muttered aloud. He turned back to see the two older men looking at him in surprise. "What? My dad used to be a clockmaker."

Qrow turned to face the Mayor. "So, we're looking for a colleague that was in this town about, two, three weeks ago." Alba thumbed his great moustache, thinking heavily.

"I don't recall any newcomers no… Then again I do not know everyone who comes in and out of this town." The Mayor stared at his silver pocket watch, listening to the tic, tic, toc. "Although, there is someone who may know."

"Who?" Cardin asked, walking over to the desk, having finished examining the different clocks around the room.

"The therapist I mentioned earlier. She would know any and everyone who comes and goes in this town." Alba's eyes appeared to be focused on a point behind the two hunters. "You should definitely visit her. Huntsmen are her specialty."

Cardin and Qrow both glanced at each other warily. "Does she have a name?" Qrow asked. Alba nodded absently.

"Yes, her name is…"

…

"Alice White. Pleasure to meet you." Dove and Sky took turns shaking hands of the blonde woman who wore a white and blue business dress. She held a clipboard tucked under her arm and a pair of spectacles over her bright blue eyes.

"Thanks. I'm Dove, and this is my teammate Sky." The blonde boy gestured to himself and his friend. "We're students from Beacon." As Dove explained their situation to the therapist, Sky took it upon himself to examine the surroundings.

The outside of the building was a dulled blue, which did not give one the impression of the completely spotless white interior. White. The therapist, or was it psychiatrist? Sky never really was sure of the difference.

White was her second name. While Sky did consider the possibility that it might be a natural occurrence, but 'White' was the name most often given to orphans whose parents surname could not be found.

Although hopefully that fact would have nothing to do with their mission. Sky turned back to his teammate and the therapist, only to see Alice apparently whispering something into Dove's ear. The blonde's expression became completely neutral, seemingly staring past the therapist

Sky had been on the same team as Dove for almost half a year at this point, the initiation to Beacon starting around March. Dove had always had his eyes partially closed, apparently having an averse reaction when too much light entered his eyes.

He couldn't remember the exact problem he had, but he knew that there was a serious one going on now. Dove had his eyes open. And that, was a problem. "Dove?" Sky stepped closer to his teammate, trying to get a response out of him.

Instead, he felt two fingers rest themselves on his temple. _"Sky Lark."_ Sky heard a voice that was not his own enter his mind. _"Let's take a look at what makes you tick, shall we?"_

* * *

 _And so we return. And luckily, I'm not Crue, so I have no trouble apologising for the length of time this story has gone without an update. I am sorry. I have no excuse. Well, I probably do but I'm not gonna justify it._

 _Point being, I apologise, here is the new chapter, I hope you enjoyed. Let me know what you liked, what you didn't, and so on so forth._

 _I could probably go into detail about things here, but I'm sure you just want to read and enjoy. Sorry if this is a bit short, but why I'm on the subject. Would you be Ok with shorter chapters if it meant I updated sooner, or do you prefer long chapters? Anyway I will let you decide,_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	27. Looking Glass

" _~Wish we could turn back time~"_ Russel sang, one earphone in his ear while Crue held his scroll in front of them and had another earphone in his own ear.

" _~To the good old daays~"_ Crue continued on. The two had been circling the perimeter of the town for a while now, listening to music as they investigated for anything strange.

There was very little to be found, or as Crue would put it… "There's fuck all out here." Russel sighed slightly, taking out his earphone and handing it back to Crue.

"Is that really a bad thing though?" The green haired boy asked, stretching his arms high. "I mean, if there's nothing to be found, that means there's nothing bad going on. What was that saying? Something about news…"

"No, there's 'nothing going on' and then there's 'suspicious'. This is definitely the latter." Crue frowned, staring out at the forest. He scratched behind his ears in slight confusion, trying to pick up on something.

"Maybe we should go where the others went." Russel suggested, standing next to the Faunus and staring out at the forest. "The therapist, or was it psychologist?" His question was met with a bark of laughter from Crue.

"Yeah, sure." He chuckled. "Russel you would not survive very long in a horror movie let me tell you that." Crue pat his back, before walking on, intent on completing one more circle of village.

"What? Why?" Russel caught up beside him, wanting to know about his apparent early death in forms of grotesque media.

The Faunus sighed and smiled. "If the therapist is the first person you see in a town, you know somethings up." He cleared his throat slightly and made his voice sound rather dangerous. "Welcome to our town, please visit this person trained specifically to get inside your head, everything will be fine."

"You know what I do if that happens?" Crue asked rhetorically. Russel shook his head. "I get the fuck outta dodge." The Faunus laughed, before shaking his head and shoving his hands into his pockets.

Russel remained quiet for a short while. "Does that mean that the others are in trouble?" His question caused Crue to freeze in place.

"Ahh shit."

…

"Hm, three hunters in training, and a fully-fledged huntsman." Alice White smiled cruelly as she stared at the four males before her. "A nice catch, truly." She pressed her hand against the stationary face of Qrow.

"It's almost a shame how little a fight you put up." She felt his rough shave and frowned. "I wonder if I should make you shave that disgusting thing off." She gave his chin a soft slap, and then turned away, grabbing her scroll from her table.

She rang up a number and waited. "Hello? This is, uh, Chicken Pow Noodles." A voice came across rather unamused.

Alice sighed. "That is the worst cover I've ever heard." She spoke calmly.

"Well it's better than answering every call with 'Hello this is the White Fang, who may we terrorise today?'" The Faunus on the other end of the line replied angrily. Behind her, at the mention of White Fang, Cardin seemed to twitch.

"You seem to have some serious anger issues." Alice responded coolly. "I wonder if we can't do something about that." The Faunus on the other end of the call shifted warily.

"I'll send them to you shortly. There should only be one more person to round up. Hunter Teams are always in groups of four." On cue, there was a knock at the door. Alice smiled, and hung up her call without a goodbye.

She made her way towards the door, and plastered a fake pleasant smile on her face. Alice opened the door, and tilted her head slightly. "Hello. Welcome to the Looking Glass. How may I help you?"

Alice hesitated slightly as she took in the knocker's appearance. His face seemed to be morphed into a deadly scowl that was directed at her- no… not at her. At something she said? "God damn puns…" He cursed.

He met Alice's eyes, as two different shades of blue clashed. "My name is Crue. I was wondering if you'd seen my team."

…

"Sunny!" Russel exclaimed, rushing into the room he was staying in the previous night and squatting down by the hole Crue had made with his head.

"Russel?" Sunny called back somewhat groggily. She walked over to the hole and bent down, forcing Russel to maintain concrete eye contact lest Crue beat the ever living hell out of him. "What's going on?"

"Ok…" Russel began. "I'm like 80 per cent sure that my entire team was hypnotised by that therapist. And Crue went down there a while ago because he trusted me to get you."

Hazel eyes stared at Russel. "He sent you to get me? Wouldn't that be because he'd want you out of danger instead?" Sunny asked.

The mohawked teen opened his mouth to respond, before it fell into an expression of fear and horror. "Oh no."

…

"Well, you may be the therapist but I'm fairly sure you have OCD." Crue commented, wiping a finger across a wall and finding not a speck of dust on his fingers.

"Yes, well, I tend to go a tad overboard with my cleansing. Usually whatever is leftover that I have no use for, I simply end up burning." Alice informed him, all the while looking for an opportunity to get Crue under her spell.

"Pyromaniac too." The Faunus nodded. "I suppose I'm a bit of one too. I once made a glove that show fire. Just cause I could." Crue smirked and pointed the palm of his hand at Alice, making a soft hissing noise, mimicking his device.

Alice raised an eyebrow in surprise. Pyromaniacs tended to come under her control much easier, with simple promises of being able to play with the dangerous element. The blonde smiled. "Well," She reached a hand out, as Crue had his back turned to her, inspecting a small clock. "Let's see if we can't get you a little warmer."

Crue turned around almost instantly at the words, face contorted in confusion. Once he saw Alice's hand reaching for him, he did the only logical thing in his mind. He leaned back. Alice moved her hand closer. Crue leaned back further.

"The hell are you doing!?" The Faunus exclaimed, slipping to the side as Alice practically chased after him.

"I'm trying to help you with your mental problems!" The therapist shouted, gripping at hairs as Crue once more dodged away from her hands.

"What the hell has that got to do with putting your hands on my head!?" Crue jumped away, seriously becoming tempted to take out his claws.

"I can get inside your head that way." Alice explained, stamping down on the white rug that covered the floor and tugging it sharply, causing Crue to lose his balance.

As Crue fell backward, Alice lunged. "Trust me," The Faunus began, as Alice's hands came down upon him. "You wouldn't like to be in there." Crue grabbed Alice by the wrists, preventing her from falling any closer to him.

Once he hit the ground, Crue leaned back and placed a knee against Alice's stomach, and pushed. Alice went soaring overhead, crashing into a plain white door.

Crue rolled onto his stomach and looked up to where she crashed. The door had been swung open, revealing what was inside. Or rather, who was inside. "There you are!"

Qrow, Cardin, Sky and Dove were stood still as statues, staring blankly forward. The Faunus ran up to them, shaking the nearest one roughly. "The Hell is wrong with you!" He shook Qrow back and forth.

"You won't be able to wake them." Alice chuckled, slowly getting to her feet. "They are in a trance deeper than any other." Crue growled slightly, before seeing Cardin twitch. He smirked.

"Fiver says I can get at least one of them awake." The Faunus opened his palm and brought his hand back, a stupid smile on his face.

"What are you-" Alice's question was cut off by the noise of the smack that Crue had delivered upon Cardin, while shouting "WAKE UP FUCKNUTS!"

"Bastard!" Crue felt a pain in his nose as Cardin punched him, but smiled all the same, as Cardin was currently glaring daggers at him. After his exclamation, Cardin looked around, realising what was going on.

His eyes landed on Alice, who looked at him in shock and terror. "You!" Cardin pointed a finger at her, his other hand reaching around his back to grab his mace. Alice realised there were now two hunters in training very angered with her, so she frowned and raised her hand to them.

"GET THEM!" Dove, Sky and Qrow all turned to face the Faunus and Human.

"Oh shit." Crue muttered, eyes going wide. "Leg it!" Both he and Cardin ran out of the room, and out of the building, the trio of hypnotised hunters hot on their tail.

"What's going on!?" Cardin questioned Crue as they ran away.

"Your one was hypnotising you all. I only got you out cause I could see you were resisting it." Crue explained. "I sent Russel off to get Sunny cause I figured we could use extra help. And I didn't want him getting in trouble."

Cardin nodded through all of this. "I think the Mayor might be hypnotised too." When he saw Crue frown at him, he continued. "I'm not saying that cause he's a Faunus! He got all distant and quiet when we asked about the Therapist."

Crue grumbled. "Great. So we might have the entire town after us at some point." The Faunus glanced back to check if they were still being chased, only to find the street they were running down empty.

"Hold up." Crue slowed to a halt, and Cardin did the same. "Where'd they go?" Cardin looked around, concern evident on his face.

"Cardin! Crue!" The two turned around, seeing who called out to them. Russel was running towards them, along with Sunny. They made sure to focus on Russel.

"You guys are ok!" Sunny smiled. Once they got close enough, Russel smacked Crue over his head.

"That's for tricking me." He frowned. The Faunus rubbed the spot where he hit, but nodded in fairness.

"So, what do we do?" Sunny asked, hoisting her sniper rifle over her back. She looked at Cardin and Crue for an answer, the two glancing at one another.

"This is your team. It's your call." Crue told him. Cardin blinked in surprise, before nodding.

"I don't know how long I was in that, trance or whatever it was. But I can remember her talking with the White Fang." He frowned, trying to recall what happened while he was out of it. "I think she was going to send us to them."

"So we just need to track them." Sunny questioned. At her words, Russel instantly reached for his Scroll.

"We can track our teammates through our Scrolls." He brought up the application and stared at the map. "It looks like they're heading into the forest. Pretty quickly." Russel rotated himself slightly, before stopping.

"That way."

…

Alice panted, out of breath after running through the forest, the hypnotised huntsman stopping behind her, showing no signs of exertion. "Damn… Heels…" She was close to the outpost now, she could see the shining metal of a stolen Atlesian Paladin.

Instead of running herself ragged again, she turned to the tallest of the hunters. "Carry me." Qrow lifted her bridal style. "Go that way." He began walking, the two students following him.

After a minute, they arrived into a manmade clearing, the grass flattened by people constantly walking over it. Several tents were propped up, White Fang members moving in and out of them, some carrying weapons and some carrying supplies.

One of them spotted the group approaching, and called out to other members, all of them turning their weapons on the intruders. They quickly lowered their guns once they saw the bright blonde hair and white attire.

"Alice." A Faunus with a black and purple tail strode forward quickly, almost too happy to see the human. "How nice of you to choose the path that lead you here."

"It wasn't much of a choice, Cheshire." Alice replied once Qrow had let her down. "I was unable to get the last hunter, and one of them broke through my hypnosis with the aid of another."

"They did?" Cheshire gasped in mock surprise. "How did they break him out?" Cheshire placed both hands under her chin and bat her eyes.

Alice sighed, rubbing her eyes with her index and thumb. "Slapped him across the cheek and shouted 'wake up fucknuts'."

Cheshire couldn't help but snigger. "Ooh, I'd like to meet him. Should we send the Rook out after them?" She turned to look at the Paladin, which was being operated very carefully by one of the Faunus.

"Yes. And get me my weapon." Cheshire lost all glee as a distant look came over her. She nodded, then moved to follow the request. Shortly afterwards, the Paladin began to stomp past Alice, who grew a rather devious smirk.

"Good. The two of them can't hope to face this alone, especially with such bad teamwork." Alice walked towards the supplies, intent on procuring an outfit for the new White Fang members.

…

"They've stopped moving." Russel informed the group, as they slowed down to stare at his Scroll. "I think they might be at the White Fang base."

"Why would the White Fang be recruiting humans? Isn't their whole thing about Faunus?" Sunny asked, looking through her scope to the direction they were heading.

"Yes." "No." Crue and Cardin answered at the same time. They briefly glared at each other, and Crue spoke slowly. "The White Fang are bad. Faunus aren't."

Cardin frowned, but did not respond. "Uh, not to worry anyone." Sunny spoke up, still looking through her scope. "But there's a giant robot heading right for us."

"WHAT!?" The three boys exclaimed, looking in the direction that Sunny's rifle was pointing. They could see bright white metal, and could faintly feel the vibration it's footsteps were causing.

"It must be one that survived the Breach." Crue realised. "You two! Go hide." He pointed to the forest while staring at Russel and Sunny. Before they could argue, Crue continued. "Alice doesn't know about either of you. We're keeping it that way."

With reluctance, the two moved away from Crue and Cardin, who both drew their weapons. "You ever fought one of these before?" Cardin asked, gripping his mace tightly.

"Yeah, but there was a bit more than just two then." The Faunus replied, thinking back to the breach. He began to form a ball from Dust, something he hadn't done in a long time. The mech seemed to notice them, and picked up speed.

"Any ideas?" Cardin asked.

"Just one." Crue answered, as he tossed the ball up, and Cardin brought his mace back over his shoulder.

"SWING!"

* * *

 _My dudes I have literally no idea what to say here except sorry for the wait and enjoy._

 _My only excuse is that I was trying to catch up on college work, and with the new Volume coming out I watched it trying to figure out how Crue would fit in. Still kinda confused about that one. Might just end up killing him off or something lol._

 _But anyway. I apologise for the update. I've gotten back into the groove now so hopefully the next one will be sooner. I think that's everything. If you have any comments, whether it be about my shitty uploading schedule or the story itself, please leave them._

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	28. A Faunus Quadrille

"SWING!"

Cardin followed Crue's instructions without any comment, and hit the ball of Dust with his mace, activating his Semblance at the same time. An explosion erupted from his mace and increased the power of his swing.

The ball went rocketing towards the approaching Mech, its size leaving it unable to dodge very the approaching sphere of doom. A huge explosion rocked the forest, causing birds to scatter. Smoke and Dust obscured the robot from vision.

"That seems a little too easy." Cardin frowned. His words rang true, as the iron beast soldiered onwards, picking up its pace as it barrelled down on the two hunters.

"Any ideas?" Crue asked the human. Cardin nodded, but grew a disgusted look as he raised both his hands in the air.

"We surrender!" He yelled. The mech skid to a halt, and appeared to look at Cardin in surprise. The same look was on Crue's face.

"Lay down your weapons." Came a voice from the mech's loudspeaker. Cardin did as instructed, glaring at Crue to do the same.

The Faunus did, but it seemed more like his hurl slipped out of his grasp in shock rather than actually complying. The robot hissed, and opened revealing a White Fang member with a gun trained on both of them.

"Why did you surrender?!" Crue finally found his voice, as the White Fang jumped down and approached the two.

"Are you kidding? If we went up against that thing we'd go down like a _feather._ " Cardin responded. Crue looked at him in confusion, before a loud BANG caused him to jump.

The White Fang member slumped down, and from the brushes came Russel and Sunny, the barrel of her sniper rifle smoking. "Wait. What?" Crue asked.

"We have team attacks." Cardin answered, picking up his mace and spinning it. "Generally they're all something to do with birds. So we agreed that any kind of bird related metaphor meant to attack."

"I knew something was up when you surrendered." Russel nodded. "You'd never do that without some kind of plan. I'm just glad Sunny took the guy down in one." He checked the body, seeing that the man wasn't dead, simply unconscious. "Must've had his Aura up."

Russel turned to where the redhead had been standing, only to find her gone. "Uh…" He droned, before seeing her inspecting the robot. The girl smiled, placing a hand on it and closing her eyes. Lines of blue spread from her hand, eventually covering the entire robot.

"What is that?" Crue asked, pointing at the machine as it began to shift and change.

"Well, my Semblance lets me alter machines. It's a bit niche, but it comes in handy sometimes." Sunny answered. "I found out when I accidentally made an Atlas robot into a dog. I also may have made it sentient." She shrugged.

"So why are you changing this one?" Cardin stepped forward, inspecting the changing robot.

"Well, I wouldn't leave this here for the White Fang to take again. And it'd give us an edge in a fight." The machine stopped contorting, and losing its blue glow. "I just thought I'd make it look cooler."

Cooler was the definite word for it. The prototype, which had been given a red and white paint job by the White Fang, was now completely different in structure. Its cockpit was much nearer the top, and the majority of its mass had transferred to its arms and legs. It now had actual hands, and fingers. The external weapons could no longer be seen, presumably hidden beneath the white and red armour.

"Motherfucker." Crue cursed under his breath, seeing the giant robot now standing before him. "Wait a minute." His head snapped to Sunny, who was looking proudly at the robot.

" _Red hair. Robots. Sniper rifle. Ridiculously big boobs. SHE'S FUCKING YOKO!"_ Crue almost started to foam at the mouth, were it not for Cardin's intervention.

"Hey." The leader said, lightly nudging Crue as he stared up at the robot. "Don't suppose you've got any songs about giant robots do you?"

Crue opened his mouth, before closing it and thinking. Then, a sly smile made its way onto his face. Cardin sighed.

"Of course you do."

…

"The Paladin is returning." Cheshire reported, entering the tent where Alice stood, watching the three hypnotised hunter change into White Fang outfits.

Alice nodded, glancing at Cheshire as she relayed the information. "Oh you look so dull." She complained, looking at the vacant expression of the Faunus. She pressed her thumb and middle finger together.

"Go back to nor-" Alice caught herself, chuckling. "Oh, that could have gone badly. Go back to Cheshire." She snapped her fingers, and Cheshire's tail shot up, before loosening and wrapping itself around her leg.

"Ooh, new pawns for our game." Cheshire's smile was back in place, reaching to each ear. "Verrrry nice." She placed a hand on Qrow's stubbly chin. "Is he your new King piece?"

"No!" Alice exclaimed, scowling. "I don't need a King piece. They do so little and risk so much. I am fine as my own Queen." She turned her nose upward, almost in disgust at the idea of having to share her power.

Before she could continue on her rant of how little she needed a king, a sound caught her attention. Cheshire apparently noticed it too, looking around confusedly. They both exited the tent, seeing many other White Fang members looking around in fear and confusion.

The sound grew louder, and Alice was instantly able to tell what it was.

It was music.

" _~~Living here in Jersey, fighting villains from afar~~"_

A steady thumping could be felt, growing closer and closer as many Faunus trained their guns on where they believed it to be coming from.

" _~~You gotta find first gear, in your giant robot car~~"_

 **[Chicks Dig Giant Robots – Deathwish IX]**

A giant robot burst through the treeline, the music blaring from it and three people riding on the back of it. The White Fang instantly scattered, dodging the rampaging mech as the three hunters jumped from it.

Alice recognised two of them as the two that had escaped from her earlier, but the third had bright green hair in a Mohawk, and was currently unknown in the equation. There must have been a fourth unknown piloting the giant robot. "GET THEM!" Alice roared, throwing out her hand.

The White Fang that had ran instantly turned around, raising an assortment of weapons at the robot and its riders. The trio on the ground split up, whereas the robot continued barrelling through. Alice searched through the sudden crowd of fighters, trying to find one of the only Faunus fighting.

Crue's eyes met hers, and Alice felt herself freeze. The Faunus rushed towards her, while Cardin and Russel flanked him, batting away attempted attacks. "Russel! Crue! Batter up!" The mace wielder cried out, as he slowed down, allowing Russel and Crue to run side by side.

Russel jumped ahead and began to spin, as Crue brought his hurley over his shoulder. Crue swung, and connected with Russel, sending him flying forward, knocking down White Fang like they were bowling pins.

Alice got out of the way just in time, as Russel went flying past. She tried to move further, but found her feet stuck in one place. Looking down, she saw her feet covered in ice. "Hah." She turned to the sound of the voice, seeing Russel lying upside down against a tree, while pointing his dagger at her.

"Thought you were free?" He laughed, before lowering his head against the ground. Alice ground her teeth together, as she turned back, seeing Cardin and Crue growing ever closer. Her scowl deepened, as she reached around her back and took out her own weapon.

The sound of a deep growling caught the attention of both huntsman, who turned to where the sound came from. They saw Alice, pointing a rather large nozzle at them, which seemed to be glowing slightly.

Crue realised what was going to happen seconds before it did, and before Cardin as well. Using the little time he had, he pushed Cardin out of the way. The human felt a blast of heat wash over him, and turned around in fear.

A tunnel of fire had replaced where he had stood just moments ago, and he heard a roar of pain from within it. The fire dissipated and Cardin's eyes widened at what remained.

Half of Crue's shirt had been completely burned away, leaving darkened skin, and some strange gauntlet on his arm. Crue gripped the burned area with his unblemished hand, growling heavily. His Aura managed to keep his body intact, but there was still an immense amount of pain. " **I am so, damn,** _ **tired**_ **of that arm being injured.** "

His eyes locked onto Alice, who, despite now being free from the ice thanks to her flamethrower, found herself stood still as a statue. Crue walked forward, his faintly smoking arm curled into a fist. The smoke that came off of him seemed to warp and twist in the air, shaping into what almost looked like…

"A w-wolf." Alice stuttered, staring at Crue's steely blue eyes. The eyes of a wolf cornering its prey. The White Fang around her seemed to share her fear, whether or not that was due to the hypnotising effects carrying over her dread, or whether it was their own, it was difficult to see.

" **You wanted to get inside my head, Alice?** " Crue said, as he neared the trembling therapist. Alice managed to take one step backwards, before her shoulders were gripped by Crue. The Faunus reared his head back and spoke, his eyes briefly flashing gold.

" **WELL!? COME ON IN!"** Crue's forehead connected with Alice's, and the world went black.

…

Alice opened her eyes, finding herself in a city. But not one that she recognised. It looked nothing like any architecture she'd ever seen on Remnant. "Ugh, back here again." Alice whirled around, recognising the voice and dreading what she would find.

What she found was about three times worse than she had originally anticipated. Three Crue's. Three wolves. But all of them different.

The three rose all as one, before noticing each other. One was wearing a completely green helmet and cloak, and another wore a pair of sunglasses. The one in the middle, who looked completely normal, sighed.

"I'm going to hope this isn't some weird schitzo thing." Crue clicked his fingers, and the other two disappeared. "Besides, I don't need any help for this." He cracked his knuckles together, and approached Alice.

Alice shook away her fears, finally in her element. "You sure about that? Minds are my specialty." She stood up straight, as a row of cards appeared behind her, spinning rapidly. "After all, this rabbit hole goes deeper than you imag-"

A rush of wind cut her off, and the cards floating behind her cut into shreds. Alice shrunk back in fear due to what appeared before her. A giant Beowulf, but brown and lacking the bone plates that signified it as a Grimm stood where Crue was moments ago.

"W-What are you?" Alice cried out, backpedalling as fast as she could. The creature before her let out a howl, and somehow Alice understood.

" **I am the Wolf. And you are in my domain.** "

A long claw swiped at Alice, sending her flying back. The therapist cried out in pain, feeling hot liquid rush over her. She looked down at her stomach, seeing three red gashes running across it. In the mindscape she didn't have Aura, which was never a problem, as no one ever fought back.

Until now. She didn't know if she could die here. Or if it would mean dying in the real world. But she didn't want to find out. Blue eyes widened as she looked back up to the Wolf. It prowled forward, eyes locked on her. Alice tried to conjure anything that could protect her from this beast. But her hands remained empty.

The Wolf growled low, stalking forward slowly. It took it's time in approaching her, knowing there was nowhere for her to run. Alice knew that too. The Wolf crouched down, and pounced. Alice screamed in fear, throwing up her arms in defence, waiting for the worse to come.

" _ **Wrath."**_

It was like time had stopped, and gravity had increased tenfold. Alice felt a chill rush throughout her body, and when she dared to peek through a gap in her arms, she saw that the Wolf felt the same. Its eyes were wide open, hair standing on end, searching the desolate street for the source of the voice.

" _ **Hello again."**_

The Wolf's eyes changed from steel to gold after the voice spoke, causing the beast to growl in anger and paw at its head. Alice did not know what was going on. Was there another person here? Another hidden personality.

In the distance, behind a massive spike in the ground, the world grew darker, and something else grew larger. Every hair on Alice's body stood on end, as she backed away from the mass of darkness.

" _ **I see we are not alone."**_

Alice froze, as the Wolf looked at her, and back to the darkness. Its muscles tensed, and it let out a deep growl.

" _ **Let's fix that, shall we."**_

From the darkness, a spear of shadow shot from it, aiming right for Alice. The therapist could do nothing but look on in fear as what could possibly be her demise approached. There was a rush of wind, and the spear stopped inches from her face.

Upon closer inspection, it appeared to be some form of tentacle. The reason it stopped however, was struggling a few feet from her.

The Wolf had its jaws clamped down on the tentacle, the black limb twisting in its grip. The Wolf growled and bit down harder. A screech rocked the entire world, and the limb was cut from the body.

" _ **Tsk. You will not allow me to dispel an intruder."**_

The Wolf spat out the remainder of the tentacle, as it writhed helplessly on the ground, before fading to nothingness. " _Grimm."_ Alice realised. " _There's a Grimm in his mind."_

The Wolf turned back to Alice, and snarled at her. The message was clear.

" **Leave.** " Alice was only too happy to fulfil the request, as she slowly faded out of existence, hoping to wake up in a world where things made a bit more sense.

Once she had gone, the Wolf turned back to the mass of black that was now equal in height to the Spire, and had grown a pale white face.

" _ **You did not kill her."**_

The Wolf barked threateningly in response.

" _ **You know who I am. Despite that we have never met."**_

The Wolf stalked forward, rising up on two legs as it grew in size.

" _ **Surely that means you realise there is a connection between us."**_

The voice only caused the rage within the Wolf to grow. The closer it got to the Spire, the more its _**Wrath**_ grew.

" _ **Even now, our bond grows stronger."**_

The Wolf now matched the dark being in height, if not a bit larger. It was the beginning of a fight between Titans.

" _ **I look forward to meeting you in person."**_

The Wolf's eyes widened, before it was thrust backwards. The Wolf hit the ground, and Crue opened his eyes.

…

Crue gasped, sitting upright immediately. His surroundings came into focus quickly, and what he saw made him almost forget what he just experienced.

Cardin was hugging Dove and Sky, apparently overjoyed that his teammates, his _friends_ , were back with him. He saw several other people rubbing their heads cautiously, taking of masks and looking at them in confusion.

Barely any of the members in the 'White Fang' were actually Faunus. Many of them seemed to be human, and looked just as confused as everyone else. Crue looked before him, seeing Alice sprawled out on the ground, unconscious.

Either he headbutted her harder than he thought, or returning from the mindscape, or whatever that was, with a wound that big seriously drained her. His eyes darkened at the thought of what went on within his own mind.

He didn't know why Salem was there. He didn't know _how_ she was there. All he knew was that somehow, it was the Author's fault. And he was going to kick him in the god damn balls for it.

"Crue!" The Faunus turned, seeing Russel rushing over to him. Behind him, Sunny was aiding many of the no longer hypnotised hunters. "I don't think anyone here was actually part of the White Fang."

Crue managed to stand up, grabbing onto Russel's outstretched hand. "Well," He looked out over the sea of maskless hunters. "Seeing as half of them aren't even Faunus, I'm inclined to agree."

Crue looked around for some kind of platform to stand on, if only to get the attention of everyone. Instead of a platform, his eyes fell on something else. "What happened while I was out?" He asked, moving towards his destination.

"Uh, after you knocked heads with psycho, everyone kinda froze." Russel explained, walking beside Crue. "We all stopped attacking, seeing as they weren't doing anything. Cardin started looking for the others, and found them a little before you came back."

"Then, it was like everyone woke up, or something." Russel looked around at the mass of hunters. There was about three dozen in White Fang gear, and all of them looked equally confused. "We found that combat medic by the way."

Crue raised an eyebrow in surprise. Russel took this as permission to continue the story. "From what she can remember, Alice kept calling her Che-" The student stopped, momentarily recalling Crue's hatred of puns.

"Uh, she was called something that you'd probably curse at." He amended. Crue nodded his head in agreement. "Qrow's talking to her now." He gestured off to the side. Crue's gaze followed, seeing the grizzled huntsman talking to a woman with deep black hair, and black tail with smudges of purple.

"So, everyone's fine." He sighed in relief. _"Everyone except for me."_ He stopped just before the robot, stretching his arms. "I'm gonna climb this and get everyone's attention." He told Russel.

He nodded, before running off to get the rest of his team and Sunny. Crue climbed up on the mech, going through every anime or show he could think of with a giant robot as a central part of it.

" _Gurren Laggen. MEGAS XLR. Voltron. Power Rangers. There's one with a bunch of Christian imagery that I can't think of. Transformers. Pacific Rim. Iron Giant."_ He had gotten to the top of the robot and looked out over the many wandering hunters.

He cupped his hands to his mouth and shouted. "YO!" Every head turned, and Crue's knees suddenly buckled with the amount of eyes on him. "Uh…" His mind went blank.

"Hey." He waved, cringing inwardly. A few people actually waved back awkwardly. "Right, uh. I'm Crue. Nice to meet'cha. So, if you haven't realised by now, you were kinda being hypnotised by someone." He called out, as the crowd started to surround the robot in order to hear him better.

"And, we managed to get you out of the hypnosis." He made a short gesture for CRDL and Qrow to come forward. The five did so, moving through the crowd to get to the front of the robot. "And then-"

Crue stopped talking, looking out into the crowd. "Sunny. C'mon." He nodded his head backwards. The redhead blushed slightly, before making her way through the crowd. "Anyway, the," He quickly counted on his fingers.

"Six of us. Wait. Forgot me. Seven. The seven of us got you back to normal. So, uh. Yeah." He nodded. "Please go back and live your lives or, something?" There was an instant mutter. Then, in the crowd, someone raised their hand.

"Uh, I'm not a teacher but, you?" Crue pointed to the hand, which lowered and a voice began to speak.

"This is probably a stupid question but, where are we?" It was a woman's voice.

"We're in a town about, uh, fourteen miles off Vale?" He answered, scratching his head. There were a few shouts of surprise, and through the clamour Crue could make out words like "Atlas!", "Vacuo!" and "Mistral!"

"Easy!" Qrow called out, suddenly beside Crue on top of the robot, the Faunus almost falling off in surprise, looking between where he was and where he appeared. "Look, we'll find a way to get you all back where you belong."

Crue let Qrow take over from that point, jumping down from the mech and landing with a soft thump on the ground. Qrow was telling everyone about how he would take them back to Vale, and from there on out Ozpin would help them get back to their homes.

Crue turned to CRDL and Sunny, the latter talking to Russel with a smile on her face. The Faunus noticed how Russel's eyes were locked solely on hers. He nodded confidently, happy that Russel was taking his threats seriously.

He turned to the rest of CRDL, and almost flinched when he saw an armoured arm enter his vision. The arm was attached to Cardin, who was looking at Crue intensely. Crue noticed the open hand pointed at him, and understood what he wanted.

Crue gripped Cardin's hand with his own, and shook it strongly. "Hope you're fine with us now."

"I'm fine with Faunus." Cardin nodded, but pointed his finger at Crue. "You, on the other hand, are an asshole."

Crue smirked. "Win some, lose some." He shrugged. The two released hands and nodded, before turning from each other. Crue wandered through the mass of hunters, who were now talking amongst themselves once Qrow had finished answering questions.

He greeted and tried to speak to many of them, before getting to his destination. Alice was still on the ground, no one had gone near her, not recognising her or being more focused on him giving the speech.

He grabbed her by the shoulders and placed her against a nearby tree. He searched one of the tents and found some rope. He moved back, tying her up against the tree. The only reason he let her out of his mind was so that he could have someone else to confirm what had happened.

He looked to the ground, seeing the discarded flamethrower. His left arm twitched painfully, causing him to grab it with his other arm. He wasn't exactly lying when he mentioned his slight pyromania. And seeing a flamethrower, in world where walking around one would hardly cause a stir.

He was definitely bringing it back to Beacon. Spoils of war and whatnot. Before that, however, he had an idea. "Qrow!" He called out over the crowd, trying to get the hunters attention. He was talking to the combat medic.

It was her that noticed him approaching, turning to talk and confusing Qrow. "So, you're the one who rescued us?" She asked, raising a purple eyebrow.

"It was a group effort." Crue responded, wondering why her eyebrows didn't match her hair.

"My name is Emilia Gray." She noticed where he was looking. "And if you say a word about my hair I will take you apart and put you back together again." She scowled.

Crue blinked. "At least you'd put me back again." Emilia huffed, but smiled slightly.

"My hair is purple. When I came to it was black. I don't know why, and I don't particularly want to know." She summarised, her tail swaying angrily.

Crue glanced to Qrow, who shrugged. "Uh, anyway the reason I came over was this." He put both his hands vertical to the ground. "I don't think the inn will be able to hold all of us."

The two black haired hunters looked around at the many people talking, and came to that same realisation. "Yeah, you've got a point." Qrow scratched the back of his head in annoyance.

"So, my solution is this." Crue continued, giving a small pause for dramatic effect. "Camp out."

The suggestion surprised the two hunters, but they could see no reason as to disprove the idea. "Could be fun." Emilia smiled. "I'm sure there's supplies here. Even if it was a fake hideout, there'd still be food."

"And with the amount of hunters here we wouldn't have to worry about Grimm." Qrow nodded in kind. Crue managed to smile widely.

"This'll be great." He rubbed his hands together eagerly. He enjoyed camping with Scouts back in his world, and with a group of more than thirty people, all of them with presumably some experience in the wild, it would be a great time.

"I wanna give the good news." Crue began to clamber up onto the robot, briefly thinking that they should give a name to it.

Instead of having to yell out again, the crowd noticed Crue climbing back onto the mech, and began to quiet down in order to hear him. When the Faunus reached the top and turned around, he noticed everyone watching him expectantly.

"Oh, you're paying attention already. Grand." He rubbed his hands together, thinking briefly. "Alright, so," He paused for a moment, going over his words.

"You're a bit off the nearest town, and there's only like, one inn there." He held up a single finger. "And I doubt it could hold the lot of us. So, instead of trekking through the forest only to have to sleep outside, how bout we do this."

"Campfire." He summarised it in one word, and apparently one word was all it took. Murmurs of agreement rose into a cacophony of cheers and laughter. "Grand! So, we need to do a little organising before that."

The crowd quieted down once again, as Crue gestured with his hands. "Ok, so I know all of yous have different weapons, but there's probably a few types that are similar." He raised his right hand over to the side.

"So, if anyone with an axe based or axe-like weapon could move over here," He waited, as a quarter of the group moved off to the side, before greeting the other axe users, "and if you could chop down some wood for a fire, that'd be great."

The group nodded, as they raised their axes, which varied from double-sided battle axes to tomahawks and chainsaws, and walked into the forest, the sound of chopping coming quite soon after.

"Ok, that's sorted." Crue nodded, clapping his hands together. "Now, anyone got something for digging?" A few people raised their hands and weapons. Pickaxes and shovels were held by many, but one person seemed to have the scoop off of a JCB as a weapon.

"Ok, we need to dig a pit for the fire, so, I'll leave the where up to you fellas." The few people gathered in the centre of the clearing, apparently discussing where to dig. Despite the similarity of their weapons, they were all distinctly different.

"Ok, ok. What else do we need?" Crue muttered to himself, before clicking his fingers. "Food." He looked back up to his audience. "Right, anyone who doesn't think their weapon could help out with camping, check the tents for food or anything useful."

A several people left the group in the direction of the many tents, Crue noticing swords, rifles, hammers, and maces. He briefly thought about getting Cardin to talk to that one, compare notes and such.

There was only six people left in the group, and Crue decided to get them closer. "You lot, come closer I don't wanna shout at only a few of you." He jumped down from the mech and approached the small group.

"Right, so, any particular skills?" He asked to the group. A female Faunus with several quills covering her body, evidently a porcupine Faunus, stepped forward.

"I'm a decent cook." She told him. "And you could use my quills to roast things over a fire." To prove her point, she aimed an arm at the ground. Several quills shot out, sticking out of the ground.

Crue nodded his head in approval. "Ok, your head chef." He smiled. "What's your name by the way?" He asked, looking at the weapon strapped to her back. It appeared to be some form of guitar.

"Ash. Ash Burgundy." She smiled widely. With that said and done, she walked over to the tents to see what food had been found. " _I feel like I should be mad about that name. I don't know why."_ Crue thought to himself.

He turned to the others, one of them he recognised as the woman who asked the question earlier. "You were the one earlier, right?" He asked.

She nodded. "Yes. My name is Heather Shields. I guess I can tell stories very well?" She didn't seem very sure of her ability.

"Stories are important." Crue told her. "Once everything dies down you can tell them." She nodded in appreciation, and left the small group. She didn't appear to have a weapon, only a large heater shield.

Although, knowing how Remnant's weapons worked, it could probably turn into an arm cannon or something. He turned to the final four, noting that they all had equally white hair. "You aren't Schnee's by any chance, are you?"

The three boys and one girl looked unamused. "No." The tallest one said. "We're from one of the largest shipping companies in Remnant. The white hair is a coincidence."

Crue nodded, muttering something along the lines of "I'm sure." He shook his head. "What are your names then?"

The four stood straight, as though they had rehearsed this. The tallest stepped forward. "Aodh." The girl stepped forward. "Fionnula." And it was at that point Crue regretted his decision.

Two twins stepped forward, both of them smiling widely. "Fiachra." "And Conn."

Then, in concerning conjunction, they all spoke. "Children of the Lír shipping company."

Crue felt his annoyance grow. "And I'm Cú Chulainn." He sighed.

One of them murmured something along the lines of "I thought it was Crue."

"Anyway, any skills?" Crue asked, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow.

The four smiled. " _~~We can acapella~~"_

Crue smirked.

"This is gonna be fun."

* * *

 _What's this? Another update? Within the same month? Truly this is the end times._

 _But yeah like I said, I was back in the groove. And the Groove is good. A lot happened this chapter. Not a lot of good things. Sorry if the mech battle seemed a bit anti-climactic, but they were wanted alive. And the Paladin doesn't exactly have any way to grab them._

 _Speaking of. The Paladin now resembles a rather popular Mecha. If the music wasn't a hint enough already, its body has the same shape as MEGAS XLR. Albeit smaller. There isn't exactly a head. The cockpit is in the chest. I don't know if I made that clear so I figured I'd explain here._

 _But, for this new Mecha, we need a name. So, I've decided to leave that one up to you guys. Give a name you think suits it. There'll probably be a makeover next chapter, can't have a plain white robot. That's just boring._

 _I think that might be it. If I left something out, or if you're confused about something, ask me or leave a review. I'd be happy to respond. I love talking to you guys about this. Now, if that is everything, all I have left to say is_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	29. A Mad Tea Party

_Quick before word. I don't know if my last chapter update went out. Please make sure you've read the previous chapter before reading this one. Thanks a bunch_

 _-Friday_

* * *

" _~~GENERIC CAMP SONG~~"_ Several people clapped and danced to the tune. The four children of Lír, and god how it annoyed Crue to think that, were extremely good at their apparent talent. Crue nodded with the beat, watching as several logs of wood were placed into the deep hole that the Hunters made.

After being piled into something resembling a pyramid, Crue smiled wildy, and grabbed Alice's flamethrower. "YOU ALL READY FOR THIS?!" He exclaimed, aiming the weapon. He received numerous cheers in response.

Crue's smile grew wider, and became slightly terrifying, as he held down the trigger. There was silence for a moment, before a rush of flame poured out of the device, causing shouts of wonder and joy as the pile of wood caught alight.

Off to the side, the members of CRDL, Sunny and Qrow watched as Crue lit the stack of wood on fire. "That," Qrow said, pointing to the Faunus' face. "is the look of someone who clearly shouldn't have a flamethrower, but has one anyway."

The other's agreed unanimously. The light from the flame casting eerie shadows against Crue's smiling face.

"Should someone get it off him or…?" Russel asked, before realising that no one would want to get between the pyromaniac and a flamethrower. Qrow raised a hand to the younger crowd, stepping forward.

"I got this." He cupped his hands to his mouth, before shouting. "CRUE!" The Faunus turned round, the flames ceasing after he released the trigger. Qrow pointed to a random tent, one hand still next to his mouth. "WHISKEY!"

Crue dropped the weapon instantly, running over to where the Huntsman had pointed. "Go grab it now." He elbowed Sky, who quickly ran forward, stumbling over his own feet as he approached the flamethrower.

He picked it up and turned around, heading back to the group. "LYING BASTARD!" A shout erupted from the tent Crue had entered, causing Sky to turn his head to see if the Faunus was currently heading in his direction to try and reclaim the weapon.

As he wasn't paying attention, he ended up tripping, and heading straight for the ground. Once he hit the ground, a small burst of fire shot from the device. It headed straight for Sunny, whose eyes widened as it approached.

Luckily, the blast was so small that it didn't do any damage to her body. Her clothes on the other hand…

"Shit!" The redhead cursed, instantly covering herself with her arms. The quickest reaction to the scene was Russel, who immediately took off his sleeveless hoodie and held it out to Sunny, looking straight at the ground as he did so.

Sunny took it thankfully, and scowled at the others, who spun away and faced the opposite direction as she quickly put the hoodie on, zipping it up fully. "Thanks Russel." Her words caused the others to turn back to her, assuming that they were given the all clear.

"No problem." He replied, blushing severely. "Talk about bad luck, huh?" At his words, Qrow's eyes widened, and he began to scoot away from the group.

"Qrow!" He heard a voice call out. The grizzled Huntsman turned, seeing who called out to him, before sprinting away. Crue followed, still angered at the lie about whiskey. However, he skid to a halt, and practically floated backwards, stopping in front of CRDL and Sunny.

"Why?" He pointed to Russel's hoodie on Sunny.

"I was cold." Sunny instantly said, as the males opened their mouth to explain. Crue squinted at Russel, before making a 'watching you' gesture, and chasing after Qrow again. After he left, Russel breathed out a sigh of relief.

The night continued on, people dancing around the fire as Ash placed some sausages on her quills and stuck them around the fire, while having several other dishes cooking over the open flame. Apparently the camp was stocked for at least another week.

However, as no one planned to stay here for another week, they used the majority of it for the night. There was singing and dancing, and Crue continuously chasing Qrow. It had become more of a gag than anything else, as Crue had long ago forgiven him, simply chasing out of some odd instinct to catch him.

Unfortunately, his body didn't agree with his want to keep the chase going. "Fucking…" He coughed out, slowing down, placing hands on his knees. "Cardio…"

"Hey!" Crue turned, seeing Cardin staring at him with an annoyed expression. "I thought we were cool now."

Crue tilted his head for a moment, before realising what he meant. "I said 'cardio'. Not Cardin." He explained, standing up fully. He walked over to former bully, who held out a bottle of water to him.

"Thanks." He said, sitting down next to Cardin and opening the bottle. The two sat in silence for a moment, simply watching the festivities. Sunny was dancing with Russel, the boy smiling widely. It gave both students on the ground a small chuckle.

"Your sister." Cardin said suddenly, causing Crue to turn his head rapidly. "You said Sunny reminded you of her. What was she like?" There was a moment of quiet contemplation from Crue.

"I had two." He answered. "They were both pains in my ass." He said, in only the kind of tone that a brother could use while still caring deeply for his siblings. "And they were both gone too soon."

Cardin took in the information silently. "I lost mine too soon as well." He stared at the ground. "She loved watching plays in the town square. She always went with my Dad." His hand tightened into a fist.

"And then the White Fang attacked. They had no reason to. It was the smallest damn village in Vale." His teeth ground together. "There was no resistance. That's why they attacked. That's why I hate them."

Cardin took a deep breath, and steadied himself. If Crue saw any trace of liquid running down Cardin's cheek, he made sure to ignore it. "Baird didn't deserve this." His fist clenched, nails digging into his palm.

"Saoirse. And Bronagh." Crue said shortly. "They won't be forgotten. I won't let them be." He looked at Cardin. "Baird won't be forgotten either." The human nodded, meeting the Faunus' eyes.

"We'll remember them. We'll keep going. We'll get strong enough to make sure none of this happens again." Crue and Cardin stared at each other, coming to a silent agreement.

"We'll keep moving forward." Cardin said, eyes hardened in determination. "For Saoirse, and for Bronagh."

Crue nodded. "And for Baird." He stuck his hand out, palm open. Cardin copied the gesture, and grabbed his outstretched hand.

They gave one firm shake, and released. It was an agreement between men. One of promise, and one of trust. To Cardin, it meant giving up his bigotry and bullying. To Crue, it meant four more people to make sure stay alive.

And it was not a promise either intended to break.

…

In the silence that followed, which became slightly more awkward as time went on, the Faunus had a thought. "By the way…" Crue began, in an attempt to say something. Cardin raised an eyebrow.

"What exactly is your Semblance?" He asked. Cardin blinked in surprise, not expecting that question at all.

"I guess you could call it 'Eruption'." He thought, scratching his chin. "I used to only be able to make explosions in my hand, but now I can channel them into my mace." The Faunus thought about what he said for a moment.

"How did you make it change so much?" He asked, wondering if his own Semblance could somehow become focused in his hands.

"Well, Semblances can evolve…" Cardin continued, before seeing the extremely confused expression on Crue's face. "Wait you didn't know that?"

The Faunus shook his head, with wide eyes. "Uh, well…" Cardin took a moment to think of how to phrase it. "There are two ways a Semblance can evolve." He said, holding up two fingers.

"One of them is through training and personal growth. A Semblance is supposed to be an reflection of your Soul, that's why it's unique to each person." He stretched his hand out, and a small explosion came out of it. "I guess mine is to do with my 'explosive personality'." He joked good naturedly.

The light caused from the explosion momentarily lit up Crue's face. The Faunus feared what he would get up to with that Semblance. "The other way it can evolve," Cardin continued, lowering his hand.

"Is by trauma." Crue shivered slightly. "Trauma or extreme personal events, something that fundamentally changes a person." He frowned. "Which makes sense, seeing as Semblances can activate under extreme distress."

"Hearing you talk intelligently sounds very weird to me." Crue murmured, before shaking his head. "So, my Semblance might evolve one day." He thought aloud.

"I thought it already has?" Cardin turned his head to the Faunus with an inquisitive look. Crue returned said look. "The night we were drinking in the room. You might not remember seeing as you were, well, drinking."

Crue nodded his head in a 'fair enough' fashion. "You stuck to the ceiling. But you weren't touching it. You kinda just, floated up there."

Crue blinked. "Huh." He brought a hand to his chin, thinking intensely. "Maybe it only activates when I'm drunk? No, I've used it before. Maybe it's…" The Faunus' words turned into mad ramblings, causing Cardin to sigh and turn his attention back to the party.

Maybe he'd join in. That woman with the huge Mace seemed like a good person to talk to.

…

A bit further through the night, when the voices had become hoarse and the dancing legs had become tired, Heather took to the stage. Standing in front of the burning pyre, she told stories of Monsters and Men. Of Kings and Queens. Of Wolves and Warriors.

Many of the people around the campfire listened eagerly, presumably having brought up on such stories. Crue listened with rapt attention, every story he learned he considered more lore to this world. It was a shame he realised most of them were probably true, as many of them did not end happily.

At some point during the night, someone began making flower crowns. Several of them were passed around with mild amusement, the crowd wearing them happily. Crue noticed Sunny and Russel sat side by side, watching Heather tell her stories, a crown of white flowers on Russel's head.

Crue listened to Heather, her voice soft as a feather, and almost drifted off with how calming it was. It seemed that many others were equally as exhausted. Crue let out a yawn, but still continued to listen.

However, once Heather began to tell the story of the Four Maidens, Crue glanced over at Qrow, who seemed a little on edge due to the story. The Faunus thought for a moment, before deciding it would _not_ be a good idea to tell Qrow what he knew.

Instead, he stood up from his place around the campfire, and made his way into the thick woods, intending to answer natures call. As he was relieving himself, he thought back to the Scroll he had stolen.

"Forgot I nicked this." He muttered, taking it out and inputting the passcode. "Arthur Watts." He recalled. He finished up, wiping his hand on his jeans, and leaned against a tree, scrolling through the man's data.

"Eh, nothing interesting in his Gallery. And no music. Man, disappointing." He shook his head. Crue couldn't recognise and names in his Contacts, all of them strange, but following the 'naming rule' as Crue called it.

"Tyrian, Hazel, Solaris, Vera." He listed off dully. Not a single name stood out. With a shrug, he exited from the contacts, and entered the File's application. He instantly righted himself. "Hold the fuck." He muttered, reading some of the names.

"Queen Virus. Queen Virus Controller." Crue realised what this meant. "THAT FUCKER!" He exclaimed, eyes narrowed in anger. _"He's working for fucking gRAGH!"_ His head suddenly erupted in pain, as he fell to the ground, clutching his head.

There was no one else around him to have caused him this pain, so he realised it must have come from inside. " **Whoever is in my head…** " He growled out, managing to stand. " **BETTER GET THE FUCK OUT OF IT!** " The pain dissipated, but Crue still clutched it.

"Was that Alice? No, she's still out of it." He shook his head, then winced as the pain came back. "Got to… work… quickly." He grabbed his own Scroll, and Watts', and transferred the Queen Virus Controller over to his own scroll.

"If he's already implanted it… the least I can do is fuck with it from here." Crue's could faintly see the bars on both Scrolls, showing how long it would take to load. He couldn't quite make it out, but it was progressing.

He managed to place both Scrolls in his pocket, before falling to his knees, forehead resting against the ground and continuing to hammer away at his mind. As he was losing consciousness, he heard the flapping of wings.

He relaxed slightly, figuring it was Qrow coming to check up on him. As his consciousness left him completely, the last thing he felt was two hands grabbing his shoulders. Curiously, the owner's fingers seemed to be a lot sharper than they should have been…

…

" _Who the fuck is blowing on my face?"_ Crue thought, slowly regaining consciousness. " _And could the fucker grabbing me let up? Christ it's like a vice."_ The Faunus' eyes fluttered open, and he felt his heart stop.

He was thousands of meters in the air. His eyes widened and his scream caught in his throat. He was left in silence, with the wind rushing past his ears. He looked up. A cloud of black feathers obscured his vision.

"Oh shit." He managed to breathe out, but the curse was lost to the wind. He looked to his shoulders, seeing a pair of talons digging into them. He was surprised that he didn't need to activate his Aura in order to keep himself from being injured. The Nevermore didn't notice that its captor had awoken, still flying forward.

Crue willed himself to look down, and saw a landscape that was twisted and broken. He had only scene such sight once before. "Salem." He realised. He was flying over Salem's domain. And he could not think of a way to escape.

He looked to his hands, seeing the bump of his claws against the fabric. He was just glad he found a spare shirt. He brought his hands to just before the Nevermore's talons, and took a breath. He was going to kill this Goddamn bird, and get back to Mentis.

"One. Two. Thr-" He fell. The Grimm had dropped him. Crue's eyes widened, and a scream escaped his mouth. It wasn't the manliest of screams, but Crue had no time for gender norms when he was falling to his death.

" _FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK! FIX FIX FIX!"_ He looked around for something, anything that could help him. He looked straight down, seeing what looked like a building made of purple and black crystal. That would be no help.

As he approached, the saw the building appear to open up, causing Crue to believe it was somehow a Grimm disguised as a building. In his defence, he wasn't thinking very clearly at the moment.

" _FOCUS FUCKING FOCUS!"_ Crue shook his head while falling. " _IF IT WASN'T FOR THAT DAMN BIRD-"_ He stopped, and flipped around mid-air. In that moment, he recalled what Cardin had said, barely an hour earlier, about his Semblance evolving. He hoped to anything that he was right. His eyes landed on the Grimm.

The Nevermore was still circling. Crue stared at it, concentrating all of his anger, his rage, his **Wrath** on it.

And then, he activated his Semblance.

It was like he had already hit the ground. Crue's body jerked in mid-air, and he heard the Grimm give out a surprised squawk. The Faunus stopped falling, and he managed to look at his surroundings. He wasn't alone.

"Well, that was quite an entrance." A man with a long brown ponytail and golden eyes said, looking at Crue with immense surprise. The Faunus found himself floating above a large crystal table.

"You're telling me." He gasped out. "I went faster than the speed of sound." A short moment later, his own scream hit Crue in his chest, causing him to fall onto the table with a curse, and roll off it. "That's gonna hurt in the morning."

His hand gripped the edge of the table, and he managed to pull himself up. "Where the Hell am I?" He questioned, looking up and actually taking in where he was. There were several arched windows, with what appeared to be purple metal woven in between them.

High above him, near a now closing hole, was a chandelier with small, glowing purple crystals hanging off it. Spires of crystal stood near the walls, candles dripping off of their tips. " _An evil layer if I've ever seen one."_

" _Wait. Evil layer. That means…"_ It was only now that he realised the other people in the room were probably not the kindest of people, nor would they be on his side. It was then that Crue decided to actually absorb his surroundings, as well as the likeliness of him getting out alive.

Sometimes Crue wondered what he'd do when faced with seemingly impossible odds. Generally he imagined himself ignoring the odds and somehow pulling through due to either sheer endurance or sheer dumb luck.

This situation seemed a tad more dire though. He was at the table made of a deep purple and black crystal. Seated around the table were three men, one of which the Faunus had met before, and subsequently stolen his Scroll from.

The large silent one seemed to be the least threatening, although that was probably because the only action he took was opening an eye and raising a brow when Crue was dropped into the room thanks to the damn Nevermore.

And then, there was the other one...

"Ooh, new bait for the Grimm!? Or perhaps a new sparring partner?!" The man with the ponytail gave a maniacal laugh, which would give the impression to many that he was at least partially insane.

To Crue it just seemed like he was trying too hard.

"You're the damned Huntsman that stole my Scroll!" The moustached man exclaimed, finally recognising the Faunus. Crue decided to play innocent.

"Watt-ever do you mean?" He asked. The elder man fumed, whereas the ponytailed man simply cackled.

"I demand you return it at once!" Watts cried, throwing out a hand dramatically at Crue. The Faunus reached into his pocket, taking out the Scroll and examining it. It was still transferring the data. " _On one hand, it means I'm probably not that far off Mentis. Or I was just brought here really quickly."_

Crue looked up to Watts, who still had his hand outstretched, and a scowl on his features. The Faunus smirked, turning to the other two males. "Hey. You guys wanna see what Watts has in his search history?"

The Faunus put on his best 'shit-eating grin' as he waved the Scroll at the man with questionable sanity. Said man responded by clapping his hands together and nodding. "Ooh yes!" He interlocked his hands, resting his chin on them.

Crue opened up Watts' browser application, and went into his history. "Eh hem." Crue coughed. "Best Moustache Wax. Why is my moustache not as spectacular as the other guys."

Through it all, Watts face grew redder and redder with anger, as the ponytail guy kept laughing louder and louder. "Ooh here's a good one." Crue placed a hand against his lips in mock shock. "Why doesn't my carpet match the drapes?"

A snigger from the larger man caught the three others attention. The man appeared to realise he was caught, and turned it into a cough, raising his fist to his mouth. The man directly across from him broke into a fit of maniacal laughter once more.

Crue still thought he was just trying too hard. "RETURN ME MY SCROLL NOW!" Watts demanded, face red and moustache bristling as he slammed a fist down on the crystal table.

"No." Crue replied. "I'm not giving a Scroll back to someone who's evil."

"Whatever makes you think we're not on the side of all the goodie goodies?" The try-hard asked.

"Well for one, good guys don't call themselves 'goodie goodies'." Crue sensed something odd about the man, some kind of strange kinship. "Kimblee looking motherfucker." He muttered.

"And for two," The Faunus raised his arms to show off the room he was currently in. "Get an interior decorator or something cause, Jesus Christ, this place screams 'Abandon All Hope Ye Who Enter Here'."

"And you would know about decoration? Uncultured swine." Watts stuck up his nose at him.

"Well I know that my place is a lot better than this gaff." Crue looked at the slowly melting candles dripping off of what appeared to be a Crystal throne. "And you really can't talk about decoration. Shave that bush off your lips and then maybe I'll consider what you have to say."

The 'Kimblee Wannabe' burst into laughter, as Watts, and his moustache, bristled with anger. "Why you..." Something blue crackled around his hands, and a short burst of electricity struck Crue in his chest.

The Faunus spasmed, Watts' Scroll falling from his hand and sliding across the table. Crue felt his lips curl upwards into a terrifying smile, before sinking to his knees and gripping the table. "Watts. Electrical Semblance. Of fucking course."

"Hey, do me a favour." Crue whispered to his attacker. Watts raised an eyebrow while staring at the kneeling male. "Never, ever, attack a girl named Nora Valkyrie. She's terrified of lightning. It just wouldn't be fair."

Watts chuckled. "Hmpf. Giving away the weakness of an ally? You are a very foolish man." The gentleman returned to his seat smugly, not seeing the smirk on Crue's face.

"Ooh, Valkyrie, the name sounds familiar." The crazy man mused, and felt a sudden chill go down his spine. Eyes like blue steel bore into his own golden ones. "Struck a nerve have I?" He asked.

"You strike one of my nerves, I'll strike you full stop." Crue warned.

The man chuckled ominously. "Ooh, I like you." He then placed an arm across his forehead, in faux offense. "But such aggravation between a fellow Faunus. Oh the shame, are we not supposed to work together to better our race?" He crouched on the handles of his chair, staring at Crue.

"You're a Faunus?" Crue managed to say, raising an eyebrow in suspicion.

The apparent Faunus' belt began to unfurl. "Why yes I am." He stood to his full height and bowed, a deadly looking stinger pointed at Crue. "Tyrian Callows, a pleasure to meet you."

Crue stared at Tyrian, and started seeing connections. A Faunus, clearly somewhat deranged, and appeared to have a set of claws on his arms. Crue stood tall, and raised his arms. "There's only room for one crazed, clawed Faunus here."

 _SNKT_

Crue's claws shot out from the hidden mechanism under his shirt, pointed at Tyrian. "And it ain't you."

The Scorpion Faunus stared at the claws, and at Crue. He licked his lips in anticipation of the fight that was sure to come. He vibrated in excitement, his own claws unhooking.

 _ **Stop.**_

Crue found himself choking on his own spit, and Tyrian appeared to whimper, before standing straight and putting his weapons away. Watts tugged on his tie, also standing up, glancing behind Crue. The Wolf Faunus wanted to turn, but found himself unable to move a muscle.

He heard the sound of a door opening, a chill that froze him to his very core blowing through. He looked to the side, and felt fear surround him.

White hair, pale skin, and a black cloak.

It glided silently past the table, straight towards the throne. She sat down. Blood red eyes burst to life, surrounded by inky blackness. The eyes of Death itself stared at Crue.

Crue stared back.

* * *

 _I feel like this chapter was a little rushed. Hmm. Tell me if it was._

 _Also if you compare Cardin to Bakugou I will literally not blame you. But the whole Semblance Evolving thing is something I believe can actually happen. Of course with how varied Semblance's can be, it will be different for every person._

 _Uh, what else. Oh yeah, you'll find out the name of the Mech next chapter, seeing as it wasn't actually in this one. I hoped you enjoyed the chapter, and as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	30. The Queen's Ground

_Quick before note, I don't know if the last 2 chapter notifications went out please make sure you've read them before hand. Thank you._

 _-Friday_

* * *

" **Hello, Crue.** "

The two simple words sent tremors down Crue's spine. The three other men sat down without a problem, leaving the paling Faunus standing at the end of the table, directly opposite Salem, shaking like a leaf.

" **Please. Sit.** " With a wave of her hand, crystals sprung up from the ground beneath Crue, knocking the Faunus' feet out from under him. He ended up sat in a chair that was not unlike the one Salem was currently in.

Crue's eyes were still wide in terror, causing Salem to smile rather eerily. " **Do not look so distraught. Did I not tell you we would be meeting in person?** " Her words caused the Faunus to remember the battle within his mind, both with Alice, and Salem.

"I remember." He finally found his voice, and it came out much angrier than he expected. "And I don't like people messing around in _my_ head."

" **It was a requirement. How else was I to ensure that you came to me?** " Salem eyed the other men at the table. " **And after all, it is so kind of you to join us.** "

"Not exactly of my own accord." Crue snarled back. He briefly wondered why he was so angered all of a sudden, before deciding it was simply the situation at hand. "And I would very much like to get the Hell out of here."

"Now that's not very nice." Tyrian pouted, still managing to look insane despite the expression. "You finally get to meet our Goddess in the flesh, and all you wish to do is leave." His tail twitched eagerly. "Perhaps we should teach you some manners."

Crue rose to the challenge, eyes flashing gold as he leaned towards Tyrian. "Try me, you Scorpion fuck. I'll rip of your tail and have you die from constipation!" He gripped the edge of the table, the crystal straining under his grip.

"What." Tyrian blinked, having lost his previous joyful insanity, now replaced with genuine confusion.

"It's an accurate threat." The large man grunted. The others turned to him. "A Scorpions anal cavity is within its tail. If it loses its tail, it cannot excrete." Tyrian's face paled, as he hugged his tail close to him, a frightened look on his features.

"Thank you." Crue gestured to him with a hand. "Also, what the fuck is your name."

"Hazel." He said shortly.

" **If I may.** " Salem spoke, clearly annoyed at the fact she was interrupted, and that the topic of the conversation was a rather disturbing one. From her tone, it was clear it wasn't up for debate. Despite how badly Crue wanted to say 'you may not'.

" **It is clear that, due to your nature, you belong here with me.** " Her wording made Crue raise an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I'd rather not." Crue said slowly, pulling out his Scroll to glance at the time. "I mean, I've got a very busy schedule ahead of me, most of which includes pissing off Cinder." He waited for a reaction, but received none, much to his disappointment.

" **But of course. Cinder has told us much about your, exploits.** " Crue froze, but beside Salem, Tyrian began to giggle loudly.

"Ah yes, why the first time we heard of you was after you had broken up with Neopo-" There was a massive _CRACK_ "-litan." Tyrian continued, ignoring the shard of crystal that nearly impaled his head.

The room fell silent, both at Crue's actions, and the Aura of danger he was giving off. "Ooh, careful there." Tyrian said smugly, looking over the shard to meet his fellow Faunus' eyes. "You could have taken out an eye. And you know what they say about that."

Crue's fist slammed against the table, splintering the surface as he glared at Tyrian. "You know. **I've always hated that phrase.** " At his words, Salem began to smile to herself, looking at Crue's golden eyes.

" **If you take one of my eyes. I'll take both of yours. And your dominant arm.** " He lifted his fist off the table, seeing many shards sticking into it, and wondering why he didn't feel anything.

" **Well. It's nice to see that my, gift, has been put into effect.** " Her words caused Crue to squint at her, wondering exactly what she was going on about. " **All those who aid me are blessed with Golden Eyes.** "

Crue blinked, before reaching to his shirt pocket, and grabbing his sunglasses. It had been a long time since he had even thought of them, but currently they were the only reflective thing currently on his possession.

She was right. His eyes were currently dark gold. " **Consider it a small metaphor, to go against our Silver-Eyed foes.** " Crue tried to focus, attempting to turn his eyes back to their normal colour. " **Of course, the stronger your loyalty, the stronger your power.** "

Crue opened his eyes once more, angered to see that they were still gold. " **Once you join us, and your loyalty grows, you will realise what we already know.** " She raised a hand, almost casually.

" **Being surrounded by only good people is unrealistic.** " She told him, and Crue finally saw his chance to do what he did best. Be an annoying, rebutting, little shit.

"Amazing insight." He said, rolling his eyes. Salem lowered her hand, lightly frowning.

" **Being a kind person doesn't guarantee a good life.** " "Like I need to worry about that one, Einstein." Tyrian caught Watts' attention, mouthing the word 'Einstein' in confusion. When Watts shrugged, they turned back to the conversation.

" **The world is full of terrible people, who will only make you suffer.** " "HMM! Really brings certain people to mind!" Crue responded, his eyes wide as he stared at Salem, and gestured to the building he was currently in.

" **There are people in this world not worth saving-** " "Like you for example." " **They are only going to use you-** "

"Well gee fucking willikers." Crue said, his eyes and mouth wide in the fakest smile possible. "It's almost as if we're stuck on the same fucking planet or something." Salem began to quite literally grind her teeth together in anger, before calming herself, remembering this is simply a side effect of her gift.

" **You clearly agree with our view of the world. So why? Why do you keep trying to save it and go against me?** " Salem asked, hands folded under her chin.

Crue pointed a finger at the Queen of Grimm, and gave his reason. "Because, I'm a petty, spiteful bastard. And I will fight you, your weird fucking henchmen, and that damn Author."

Salem's eyes narrowed, staring down at Crue, her red pupils barely slits. " **You would go against your Queen.** "

"My Que- Enough with the fucking chess metaphors OK!?" Crue stood up, slamming his hands down on the crystal table, facing down Salem.

Rather than be offended or angered, the Queen calmly rose a hand. " **I have the whole set you know.** " She gestured to Hazel. " **My Rook.** " To Watts. " **My Bishop.** " To Tyrian. " **My Knight.** "

"That's only three." Crue counted, momentarily thinking of the pieces required in the game.

" **Well not everyone is here, as you can see.** " Salem gestured to the empty seats. " **Envy, Lust and Gluttony are out following my commands. They are my other half.** "

"For fucks sake!" Crue exasperated. "Are you using Chess metaphors or the Seven Deadly Sins!?"

" **Allow me to answer that with a question of my own.** " "THIS ISN'T JEOPARDY!" Crue' complaint went unnoticed, and not understood.

" **Everyone I have named. Every Sin, every piece. What have I left out? What Sin? What piece?** " She leaned forward. " **What. Are. You?** "

The Faunus fell silent, actually thinking about the question. In that moment, he remembered something. During his 'actual' initiation. The piece he chose. "The Dark King." He whispered. "And the Sin is… Wrath."

Salem smiled. " **Exactly.** " Crue took a moment to process this information. How long had he been part of Salem's game. Was he the King? Or was he just another pawn.

" **Your Golden Eyes, take on the power of my Wrath.** " The Faunus' ear twitched slightly, hearing Salem's words. Silently, he grabbed his glasses, to once more look at his reflection.

" **And my Wrath, is insurmountable. When you borrow it, you cannot possibly lo-** " "Your Wrath ain't shit."

It seemed as though the very world had fallen silent. All eyes in the room were now focused directly on Crue, who was looking down at his reflection. _**"What."**_ Salem hissed, venom dripping from her voice.

"Your Wrath. Ain't. Shit." Crue repeated, annunciating each word with increasing anger. "Tell me something, _Salem_." The use of her name caused the Queen's eyes to turn to slits.

"Which eyes contain more anger, more rage, more **Wrath?** " Crue looked up, meeting Salem's eyes. "These?" He gestured to his currently golden eyes. " **Or these?** " He blinked, and his eyes returned to their steely blue colour.

Salem's own eyes widened, seeing his point as true. In that moment, where Crue gained his old eyes back, he took the opportunity to stare into the abyss.

The abyss blinked.

" **Because I feel you should know, Kings and Wrath rarely go well together.** " He stood from his own chair, making himself as tall as possible while pushing his chest out, only now realising why it was so similar to Salem's. It was his throne. He was a King.

" **Whether or not they go well together is to be discovered. Tell me, why do you think I chose you as the King piece?"** Salem asked, interlocking her fingers.

"Because compared to these guys I can do fuck all?" Crue replied, fairly sure of his reasoning. The others seemed to nod at his words, mildly annoying him.

" **That is yet to be seen. But no, the reason I chose you for my King is quite simple."** Salem relaxed her posture, placing an elbow on her throne and resting her head in her hand. " **Kings belong next to their Queens.** "

" **You belong next to me. As my King. My Wrath.** " She waited a moment, seeing Crue slowly realise what she was insinuating, before smiling. " **My concubine.** "

In the silence that followed the Queen of Grimm's words, you could hear a pin dro- "YOUR FUCKING W _HA_ T?!" Crue exclaimed, his voice cracking slightly from the sudden volume. The Faunus turned to the other males, all of whom had wide eyes.

"Did anyone happen to see the left field that came out of?" He practically begged them to tell him he misheard.

"My lady," Watts surprisingly came to his rescue. "I was not aware your humour was this," He seemed to struggle with the right word. "Involving?" Crue nodded to him in thanks, turning back to Salem.

" **Rest assured Watts, this is no joke.** " At her words, everyone at the table paled. " **The Queen of Grimm, and the… What was it you called yourself?** " She eyed Crue with an interesting expression on her face.

" **The Dark King? Oh yes, that shall make a lovely combination.** " Sweat beaded down Crue's brow, desperately thinking of a way out of this situation, and hoping that he was just dreaming all of this.

"I…" He tried to string any amount of words together. "…do not…" Salem frowned, and the others watched with a concerned curiosity. "…think I'm your type."

The heads of the men swivelled, waiting for Salem's response. " **You'd be surprised.** " She said with a slight chuckle. " **I have been alive for many millennia, Crue. I do not believe there is a person alive who could comprehend my** _ **type**_ **, or my sexual preference.** "

Crue shrunk in his chair. " _I wonder if she and Ozpin ever did the nasty."_ He was partially annoyed that his mind wandered to such strange places during moments of imminent doom. On the other hand, he just got a great idea.

"And what's to stop me from going against you. I go to Beacon. You know, _Ozpin's_ school?" He sat up straight, pushing his chest out. Salem's eyes narrowed. "As far as you know, with the gift you gave me, I could overpower you. Or kill you in your sleep."

He smirked as Salem's fist curled into a ball. The males sighed to themselves, as if they realised that Crue would not be able to ally with them if he was dead. "That gift you've given me could be your downfall."

" **It is a shame you are correct.** " Salem said, through gritted teeth. " **However, that is not the only gift you possess.** " Crue's smirk was cut short.

"What do you mean?" He asked instantly. Salem took the opportunity to smile, looking at her hand, as a strange purple began to glow from it.

" **It's been within you all this time. I simply need to unlock it.** " The glow became brighter, causing Crue to squint.

"What do you mean unlo-" Salem thrust out her hand, the ball of purple energy shooting towards Crue, and passing into his chest.

His breath caught, his pupils dilated, and he screamed. It wasn't the same pitch as the one that came out when he was dropped into the Castle. This one was much deeper. Much angrier. And filled to the brim with absolute **Wrath**.

"AAAAGGGGGHHHHHHH!" Crue screamed, clutching his head, and his ears, as he felt his entire body shift and change. His bones grew and morphed, his teeth sharpened and transformed.

"AAAAAAAAAGGG **GGGHHHHHHHHWOOOOOOOOO!** " The pain came to a stop, and Crue opened his eyes, panting heavily. He seemed to be taller, and the men before him looked upon now with what appeared to be fear. Watts was even off of his chair, staring at him wide eyed.

" _What did you do?"_ "GRGGGHHH." Crue's eyes widened, and he looked down. Brown fur covered the entirety of his body. He raised his hands, seeing five long claws on each hand. " _WHAT DID YOU DO!?"_ " **GRAAAAAAAAAAGH!** " The roar that came from Crue quite literally caused the very building he was in to shake, shattering the windows and causing Tyrian to slam his hands over his ears.

Through it all, Salem sat on her throne with a smile. " **Your power has grown.** " She said, causing Crue to snarl at her, his snout rising up, showing a row of pointed teeth. " **I assume at the start, you could only manifest part of your body. Your claws perhaps.** "

Before Crue could attempt to get closer to Salem, in what would probably be a rather unsuccessful attempt to rip out her neck, his 'paw' felt something. He looked down, seeing his sunglasses. Reflected in the glass was Crue's face. Or snout, rather.

What caught Crue's attention most was the Golden eyes staring back at him. With a deathly growl, he closed his eyes and focused on his own Wrath, ignoring Salem's. When he opened his eyes again, he found eyes of blue steel gazing back.

Now that his mind was a tad clearer, he could actually understand what was going on. He was just turned into something akin to a werewolf. And he was a Wolf Faunus.

" _Bastard."_ "Grrh." Crue grumbled. " _I'm a fucking Were-Wolf Faunus. What a fucking cliché."_ He looked up to Salem, who appeared to be waiting patiently, a knowing smile on her face.

" _I want to rip that smile off her face and gouge out her eyes."_ Crue thought darkly, growling low as he stared at his hands. Paws. Claws. Whatever the fuck they were. He was somewhat surprised to see that he had retained all five digits.

With a thought, he looked back up to Salem. He wanted nothing more than to simply destroy her. End it all before it could begin. However, there was the question of whether or not he would be able. Salem was the main Antagonist for a reason.

And Crue didn't know if he could defeat her on his own. Instead, he looked past Salem, seeing the blown out window. An idea sparked in his mind. Despite how he was currently working on baser instincts, one of those instincts was to Survive.

The first sign that things were not going to go as Salem planned was the smile that made its way onto Crue's transformed face. A terrifying thing to witness, as his new teeth, new fangs, created something akin to what would belong on the face of a crafty cat, rather than a wrathful wolf.

Crue raised a singled, furred fist at her, before extending his middle finger. Salem may not have been around the Children of Man any time recently, but she was fairly certain she knew what that gesture meant.

Her eyes narrowed, as she waited for Crue to move. And move he did. He raised up his fist, and slammed it down onto the table. She briefly heard Watts cry out "My Scroll!" over the sound of cracking crystal, before half of the table lifted up, obscuring Crue from her view.

In that brief moment of blindness, there was a second crash, and when the table fell back down, Crue was gone. Salem's eyes widened as she stood from her throne. " **WHERE IS HE!?** " She exclaimed, standing from throne in an uncharacteristic show of emotion.

"He bolted out the window!" Watts answered, clutching the remnants of his broken Scroll in his hands. "First he steals it, then he breaks it! What is wrong with him!?" He felt the others glaring at him, and decided to just leave the subject alone.

"Will he even be able to get back to Vale?" Hazel questioned, looking out of the window Crue had escaped from, into the distance of the Grimmlands.

" **I am unsure.** " Salem frowned, joining Hazel in staring out into her domain. " **With his newly unlocked power, he could very well become unstoppable.** "

…

" _I DON'T KNOW WHERE THE FUCK I'M GOING OR WHAT THE FUCK I'M DOING!"_ Crue screamed, his legs (all four of them) going much faster than he was used to. He rushed through the world, everything that he passed turning into a blur of colour.

He ran as fast as he could, occasionally running past, or in some cases with a rather unfortunate Nevermore, through Grimm. The former Faunus was all too happy with that accident.

He had no idea how long he had been running for, nor did he know how far. Although the blurs were starting to turn a greener hue, he was still unsure of where exactly he was. In fact, he didn't know if he could turn around and check without tripping over his new limbs.

" _Listen you fuck, I somehow made it out of Salem's lair I am going to find out a way back to Mentis."_ Almost as if the world heard his angrily worded goal, several hundred metres ahead of him was nothing but blue.

" _Fuck. Ocean. Fuck."_ Crue looked at the approaching mass of water. " _Which ocean? Wait. I don't know the oceans. FUCK."_ He had no idea how to stop running, he also didn't know if he could swim in this form.

That only left one option. "FUUUUUUUUUUUU-" Using his new leg muscles, he leapt as high as he hoped he could possibly go. "-UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU-" He looked down, seeing waves rushing past.

"-UUUUUU-" He looked forward, seeing approaching land. He couldn't have jumped that far could he? He'd have to get a hold of a map of Remnant sometime soon, just to see what the shortest distance betw- oh there's the ground.

"-UCK!"

He hit the ground with a massive smack, causing a small crater. " _Ow."_ He growled, placing a hand onto the rim of the crater and pulling himself up. "HAND!" He suddenly exclaimed, seeing his regular hand attached to his regular arm.

He grabbed it with his other hand and laughed, kissing his palm. "Oh how I've missed you!" He hugged his arm close.

"Thank God I'm not naked." He said, looking downward and staring at his shoes. He wiggled his toes within them, pleased that he was human again. He gave his head a quick rub. "Faunus again." He noted, feeling his ears.

"Now. How the fuck do I get back to Mentis." He scratched his head, looking into a massive forest before him. He decided to just walk as far away from where Salem was. He frowned momentarily.

"I can just tell, you bolded every word that came out of her mouth." He shook his head. "That would get so confusing if you made someone else's words bold?" He spoke aloud, asking the 'Author'.

As Crue was walking, he accidentally tripped over an exposed root, biting his tongue. "FUFFER!" He exclaimed, holding his chin in pain.

He growled to himself, before continuing to walk, a scowl on his features. With his mouth closed, he walked and thought, mostly about what Salem had said to him.

" _I am the embodiment of her Wrath? What Full Metal Alchemist bullshit is that? I'm my own Wrath. And I'm not going to let some pasty faced bitch tell me whose side I'm on."_ He felt his blood start to boil.

" _If anything I'm going to stick to Ozpin now just to spite her."_ His breathing became rapid. " _And once I get my chance I'm going to rip her fa-_ AAAHH!" Crue gripped his head, feeling the same pain that had occurred before he was stolen away to Salem's fortress.

"Not on your life!" The Faunus exclaimed, getting into a fighting stance and preparing for anything that could attack. Nothing came. The Faunus had a small moment of complete silence, before pressing onward.

"I get headaches whenever I get angry now. Great. That definitely won't be a problem in the future." Crue said, rolling his eyes. He took a breath, trying to focus on anything other than the anger he was currently feeling.

"Salem knows I know Cinder. But Cinder hasn't said anything to me about that. Unless she doesn't know I'm meant to be her King." The Faunus shuddered lightly, before his eyes widened and he grew a devious smirk.

"This technically means I'm in charge of Cinder." Crue let out a very deep cackle, desperately wanting to use this against her. "But, that means she'll know I've met Salem. Fuck." He sighed, placing a palm against his face as he continued his walk.

"And as far as she knows, I'm just an annoying little shit to her. The Wolf is the only one that actively stopped her." He frowned, putting his hands in his pockets. "That doesn't mean she wouldn't think twice about getting rid of me."

He willed himself not to get angry. He needed to do something. Anything. As long as it meant stopping Salem, along with Cinder. There had to be something he could do.

Crue growled, slamming his fist against a tree as he kept walking, hoping he was going in the right direction. His steely blue eyes shone through the night, though to him it was clear as day.

He knew what he had to do.

" _I need to tell Ozpin."_

* * *

 _DUN! DUN! DUUUUUUUUUUN! Is it finally time for Crue to come clean about everything? Will he actually tell Ozpin that he isn't of this world? Why does Salem want to bone Crue? All good questions, and all will be answered soon._

 _Also, HOLY FUCK 30 CHAPTERS SWEET MERCIFUL LORD! This is technically my longest story by word count. Five more chapters and I pass White Pink and Brown Knight. Can't wait for that :D_

 _That's all for now, hope you enjoyed, leave a review if you did, and as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	31. Back To Beacon

"Ozpin. You're a cartoon." "No that's a terrible way to start it." Crue grumbled to himself, breathing out through his nostrils in annoyance. This whole thing was grating on his nerves. In all seriousness, maybe he should just leave that part out. And just tell him what he has learned.

"Yeah, that's better. Besides, I can just say I learned all that during that one trip." He nodded to himself, walking through the forest on the way to Mentis. Which he still had no idea how to get to.

And once he got back there he had to name the Mech. He closed his eyes and pictured it. "Hmm, let's see. It's like Megas minus the head, and I never watched that weird one. All I know is the meme. _SHINJI GET IN THE GOD DAMN ROBOT_. I'm sure that would confuse the hell out of anyone here. Do they even have memes? Do they even have- Why am I flying?" His eyes shot open as he stared at the rapidly passing clouds.

The moment he opened his eyes however, he began to fall to the ground. "Nononononono!" He closed his eyes and concentrated on the Mech. He stopped falling, but continued to fly in a certain direction.

"Hmm." Crue thought, a frown on his face. "My Semblance allows me to change my center of gravity. I'm able to change it so that my gravity is facing upward just my thinking it." He thought back to the night in the Inn, where he had floated up to the ceiling.

"And because I'm focusing on the Mech, my Semblance is making it so that the Mech is my center of gravity. If it was lighter than me, it'd probably be hurtling towards me." He stopped for a moment, not exactly enjoying at thought.

"So technically, I'm not flying towards the Mech." His eyes opened as he stared at the sky, stars shining above. "I'm fal-" He looked down, cutting himself and his Semblance off, just in time to narrowly avoid hitting the mech, Bouncing along the ground instead, his Aura flaring up in order to prevent him from breaking anything too important.

He rolled along the ground, and came to a stop, groaning as he flopped onto his back, staring up at the night sky, looking at the twinkling stars. He was briefly annoyed when he realised no one had made any cries of concern or surprise at a Faunus falling into the area. Literally.

He managed to crane his neck slightly, seeing that the fire had been put out, and everyone was asleep. "Ok yeah that's fair." He let his head fall back, groaning as it hit the ground. He stared up at the sky, looking at all of the stars, and wondering if there were any different constellations in Remnant.

He closed his eyes, and breathed in. "Northstar." He stared upwards, seeing the bright and shining star, and then looking over to the Mech, where he noticed a hand leaning off it. He saw a silver ring on one of the fingers, and realised who it belonged to.

"Must've been drinking. Not that I can say much." He sighed, deciding to close his eyes and actually try to sleep.

"Maybe when I'll wake up, it'll turn out I never actually met her." He let out a bitter laugh. "Yeah. Like I'd be that lucky."

…

A gunshot sounded, and instantly Crue was on his feet. So was quite literally the entire camp, all of them holding their weapons at the ready. "My bad!" Everyone turned, seeing Qrow standing atop the Mech, the barrel of his weapon pointing into the air and smoking slightly.

"I had to get you all up somehow." Crue sighed, letting his head fall back down onto the soft grass and closing his eyes. "There will be a few bullheads coming soon, in order to bring you to Beacon, where you ca-"

Everyone wondered why Qrow had stopped talking. "CRUE GET UP YOU LAZY BASTARD!" The Faunus' response was to raise an arm, along with a middle finger. A few laughs sounded out, causing Qrow to grumble.

Having failed to get Crue up, at least he knew he was awake. "Anyway." He rolled his red eyes. "You'll get to Beacon, where we'll either house you for a bit, or you can straight to Vale and make your own ways home."

"Which is something I don't recommend." Crue sat up, now fully awake and going through scenarios in his head rapidly.

"Oh look who has decided to jo-" "Yeah whatever shut up." Crue waved away Qrow's insult, surprising the hunter that the Faunus could be that blunt.

"You all realise the Vytal Festival is in like, a week, right?" Crue told the crowd, many of whom looked shocked.

"HOW LONG WAS I OUT?!" He heard someone exclaim.

"Absolutely no idea." Crue replied. "But, you might as well go seeing as you'll be in Beacon, you know, where the thing is being held." Part of him felt that he wasn't exactly correct, but he had gotten his point across.

"Some of us have families to return to." A voice called out, and Crue vaguely recognised it as Heather's.

"I'm not saying you have to go." Crue responded. "It's just an option. You can go home to your families, friends, whatever you got."

There were a few more murmurs going around, people discussing it with those next to them. He waved down Qrow and thought of what to say. The Hunter jumped off the Mech, Northstar, Crue could remember that much, and approached the Faunus.

"Have you talked to Ozpin?" He asked simply.

"Of course I have." Red eyes looked mildly insulted. "I tell Ozpin everything." It was Crue's turn to squint at the man. "There will be Bullheads here in a while." He nodded his head over to the left.

"Go talk to your friends or whatever you kids do now-a-days." The Hunter instructed.

"Sure ya old fart." The Faunus ducked immediately, dodging the Hunters punch. Crue backed up rapidly while flipping Qrow off with a smirk.

The older Hunter grumbled, taking out his Scroll and dialling up Ozpin, planning to tell him about the possible new additions.

Meanwhile, Crue found CRDL along with Sunny. He noticed that Sunny was wearing some strange necklace of flowers, shrugging it off and figuring that Russel made it for her. "Hey!" He waved, catching their attention.

They waved back, returning to their own conversations as Crue walked over. He saw Russel and Sunny exchanging contact information, and the other members of the Beacon team talking about last night.

"…and she gave me some really good pointers, told me to look her up if I was ever in Mistral." Cardin explained to Dove and Sky. He nodded to Crue, who joined the trio. "What about you guys?"

"This one dude showed me a really cool trick I can do with the halberd. It also gave me an idea for a new team attack." Sky answered.

"I learned absolutely nothing." Dove said. "But, I had fun." This got a laugh out of the team. "What about you, Crue?" The slant-eyed teenager asked, turning to the Faunus. "You learn anything?"

Crue stayed silent for a moment, thinking over everything that happened. "I learned that some very weird people like me."

"Hey." Cardin frowned.

"Not you dumbass." He smirked good-naturedly, before shaking his head. "Just, weird people." He sighed, deciding that when he tells Ozpin he will leave out the fact that Salem wanted- wants to bang him.

"This have anything to do with Qrow outing your fetish the other day?" Sky asked.

Crue thought back to what Qrow said. "Fuck." He crouched down, slapping his hand against his face, and causing the other three to laugh.

There was a sound of rushing wind, causing all of those on the ground to look up and ready their weapons. There was no need, as the cause of the wind appeared, two Bullheads hovering over the forest.

"Ah shit." Crue cursed, realising he needed to fly. Maybe he could use his Semblance to get to Beacon. "Nah." He shook his head. There was still a lot he didn't know about it, and using it to travel such a large distance was a risk he didn't want to take.

The Bullheads landed, blowing back everyone's hair. "Alright!" Qrow called out. "Everyone going to Vale, get on!" His voice was partially lost due to the engines of the machines, but everyone got the idea.

As the mass of professional Hunters boarded, Crue watched as Sunny stayed where she was. "You're not coming?" Russel asked, disappointment evident in his voice.

The redhead shook her head sadly. "No, I've got to make sure the town is ok. Who knows what Alice might have done." At the mention of her name, the group looked over to where the blonde was being carried onto a Bullhead, her mouth gagged and her limbs tied.

She looked over to the teens, and when her eyes met those of Crue, she immediately began to panic and struggle against the hunters, her pupils practically pinpricks. This action did not go unnoticed by the others, who all looked at Crue concerningly.

"My head ain't a nice place to be." He said shortly, before walking towards the Bullhead that did not currently occupy the only other person who knew what was in his head. The others followed, saying their final farewells to Sunny, waving at her as the Bullhead took off.

"She still has your jacket." Crue noted, nudging Russel who looked down at his shirt, evidently not noticing this.

"Ah crud." He frowned, before shrugging. "I've got more back at Beacon. Sides, aren't girls supposed to take guys clothes?"

Crue thought back to his time with Neo, and waking up one morning to see her wearing his shirt. "Yeah." His voice came through with a touch of melancholy, still hurting over the break up. The Faunus lightly shook his head, knowing that she was probably going through the same.

And maybe if he tried he could actually believe that. "Then it's fine." Russel said with a smile, looking back at the forest, where he could barely make out a flash of red amongst the green.

Crue recognised the smile, the smile of a boy who has recently acquired a girlfriend. He shook his head, deciding not to give the green haired teen any shit for dating her. At the thought of his hair, he glanced up to Russels Mohawk.

"Hey, where's your little flower crown yoke?" Crue asked, waving above his own head.

"Oh, Sunny took it." Russel laughed.

Crue nodded. "She took your flower-" The Faunus froze mid-sentence, slowly turning his head to stare at Russel.

The teen slowly began to sweat under the burning gaze. "W-What? What is it?" The Bullhead was too cramped for him to successfully escape his watch.

"She took your flower." He repeated.

"Yeah, my flower crown." Russel corrected. Crue stared. "I don't know what you want me to say to stop you from killing me."

"There is nothing you can say." Crue told him. Before he could make good on his word, the Bullhead lurched. Every set of hands gripped onto something, keeping themselves steady. Crue completely froze, standing as straight as a rod, with his Semblance focused entirely on the metal below him.

"Why don't you kill me once we land." Russel said with an amused expression, holding onto one of the railings. Crue would have responded with a witty comeback had he not been fearing falling out of the flying vehicle.

Thankfully his fear was short-lived, as the Bullheads soon returned to Beacon, setting down and letting their passengers off. Crue almost kissed the ground, but refrained from doing so because he considered all of the foot traffic a place like this must get.

"I must commend you on a well completed mission." The Faunus looked up from the ground, and met the hazel eyes of Ozpin.

"Thank you Professor." Cardin accepted the compliment, stepping beside Crue, the rest of his team behind him. The white haired Headmaster looked at the two before him, and smiled, seeing that they weren't trying to bite each other's head off.

"Very good." He nodded, before turning, seeing Qrow directing all of the Hunters. "And what an amazing turn out for the festival." He seemed to chuckle. "Ironwood will be pleased with the extra security."

His words gave Crue pause, realising that he couldn't exactly tell Ozpin without telling Ironwood. And how would a General of a military react to a 'being from another planet' who seemed to know their future.

Based on literally every movie he had ever seen, he would be drawn and quartered. _"Fuck."_ He thought. _"I can't tell him. I- Why is this shit so complicated?"_ He considered maybe leaving hints as to what would happen as the Wolf.

" _That could work."_ Though whether or not they would listen or fire on sight to a 'criminal' is up in the air. " _I need a neutral party."_ He decided. " _Someone that I can tell what's going on without any repercussions."_

And where the Hell was he gonna find one of those. "Hey!" Crue suddenly exclaimed, seeing a pair of guards walk away with Alice, and her flamethrower. "That's mine!" His words caused Ozpin and the others to look at him.

"It belongs to the culprit." Ozpin told him. "Therefore, it will be evidence." His words caused Crue to grind his teeth and grow a frown.

"Damn it." He hissed. "I won it fair and- ok maybe not fair." He stopped himself.

Ozpin chuckled at the Faunus' words. "If you want a flamethrower you will have to make one yourself."

"Fine."

And it was at that point Ozpin realised he may have made a mistake. "Guys, I'll see you all later." Crue waved to CRDL, walking towards the dorms, planning to have a shower, then go into Vale to buy supplies.

"What have I done?" Ozpin whispered, expecting the entirety of Vale to be on fire by midnight. No that was too generous. Eleven thirty.

…

Crue walked through the surprisingly empty halls of Beacon. " _Everything seems quieter for some reason."_ He shrugged it off, heading to the dorm. He noticed the door slightly ajar, but did not care much, only seeing it as not needing to take out his Scroll.

"I wonder what everyone's been up to while I was g-GHHH!" Something heavy and hard impacted Crue's head, and he instantly fell to the floor, face first.

"Ha! Now that's ice wa- OH MY GOODNESS CRUE! I'm so sorry!" The Faunus could barely comprehend what was going on, hearing the voice, but also a large amount of ringing. He managed to lift his head, to find a distinctly concerned Weiss staring down at him with a horrified expression.

"W-Weiss?" Crue stuttered. "Why do you look so, so, Chibi?" Her eyes were too large, along with her head.

"I don't know what that means, but it might because I dropped a bucket of ice on your head." The Heiress picked up the Faunus carefully, sitting him down on her bed. "I didn't realise you were back." She told him, sitting down next to him.

"I got back today." Crue replied, rubbing the spot where the bucket landed. It luckily missed his ears, God only knows how much that would have hurt. "Who was that even meant for?" He groaned out, resting his head on Weiss' shoulder.

The girl clearly didn't mind, if the way she was currently rubbing her hand along Crue's head was any indication. "Ruby. We are in the midst of a 'Prank War'. I've, never pulled a prank before." There was a slight giddiness to her voice.

"Word of advice." Crue spoke up. "Add a rope. And don't freeze it completely. You could give her a concussion." Weiss nodded in agreement, realising how badly it could have gone. Before realising something else.

"You, don't have one, do you?" She asked hesitantly. Crue chuckled lightly.

"No." He smiled. "I've got a thick skull." He rapped his knuckles on his head to prove his point, before wincing in pain.

"Hmph. Very thick, as I can see." Weiss giggled. "But you are ok, right?" She asked seriously.

"Yes. I promise." Crue told her, holding up his pinky finger. Weiss shook it without question. "Now, if you don't mind, I think I'll have a shower."

At his words, Weiss gave a short sniff. "You smell, like wood smoke. And forest." Crue nodded.

"Yeah, we ended up having a huge campfire." Crue explained, loosening his tie and letting it rest on the bed. "Didn't get much sleep though."

"I wouldn't imagine so. It must have been quite an arduous mission, with Cardin of all people being in such close proximity." Weiss gently pat Crue's head.

"Actually we're cool now." Crue told her, leaning into her hand. "He's not racist against Faunus any more. Well. He still doesn't like the White Fang. But he's got reasons."

"Hmm." Weiss hummed in surprise. "I suppose there is hope for all of us." She leaned her head against Crue's without thinking. The two let out a sigh of contentment at the comfortable position.

"I didn't realise how much your presence meant till you weren't here." Weiss spoke. Crue raised an eyebrow at this, unseen by the heiress. "You've become a part of this team, even though you're not officially a member."

"Yeah you're stuck with me now." The Faunus chuckled. It got a smile out of the heiress.

"Oh please. If anything you're stuck with us." Weiss replied, feeling the Faunus shake with laughter. "I'm glad you're back. The others will be too."

A genuine smile grew on Crue's face. "It's good to be back."

…

The two stayed like that for five more minutes, neither realising just how starved for affection they were. There was no romantic gesture to any of this, though Crue did make a joke about dating Weiss for the sole reason of giving her dad a heart attack.

After a laughing fit, which Crue recorded due to both the hilarity of the situation and the fact it made Weiss look adorable, he headed to the shower. Once inside, he began taking off his shirt, and realised something horrible.

Where he had been hit by the flamethrower was blackened with soot. However he was focused on the mechanism beneath it. "Nooo." He moaned, looking at the darkened gauntlet. He tried to activate it, but all that happened was a puff of air escaping through the destroyed tube that connected the two.

He took the gauntlet off, and winced as the plastic tube was practically peeled off of his arm. He didn't feel any pain from the sensation, surprisingly. He checked the other gauntlet, relieved to see it still worked.

"Maybe I should remake my glove." He thought, stripping down and getting in the shower. The ash began to wash off almost instantly. He sighed in relief, the water hitting his skin. It had been too long without a shower.

He began to focus on his plan, and ignoring the fact that Weiss had probably knocked something loose with that 'prank'. He'd probably go to a normal shop, and not an armoury. Even with what he had from robbing the store, the prices there were pretty steep.

He decided to ignore the thoughts for now, and simply relax in the shower. Or he would have, had the water not suddenly turned ice cold. " _AAH!"_ Crue's voice took on a higher pitch at the sudden change in temperature.

He could hear muffled laughing from outside the bathroom. "Weiss!" He exclaimed, hearing the laughter grow. He shook his head with a smile. At least she's happy. It would be a far cry from the Weiss that ended up in Atlas because of her father.

As he returned to his shower, he continued to think about the Fall. " _Gotta stop Weiss from being taken by her father. Gotta stop Penny and Pyrrha from dying. Which but would be a lot easier if she doesn't take the Maidens powers."_

" _I can probably convince her not to. But, she's too good a person."_ He frowned, lowering his hands to his side. "And even then… Ozpin will probably do a better job convincing her." Crue started to grind his teeth together, becoming angrier with every passing second.

"Because that's what he does. He manipulates people." Crue's fist clenched tightly. "He manipulated a first year who only wanted to do some good." His fist impacted the tiled wall of the shower. "Ozpin would have never have told her if he didn't expect her to say yes."

Crue slumped down against the wall, sitting in the shower as the water cascaded down. "She would give up her life for the 'greater good'. So would Ruby." He would make sure neither of them lost their lives to someone like Ozpin.

"Maybe it's a good thing I didn't tell him." He grabbed a bottle of shampoo, and squeezed harder than strictly necessary. "I'm not lying to him. Just like he's not lying to anyone else. Just keeping more secrets."

"I don't know why I suddenly hate him so much." Crue pondered. "Maybe cause of what Salem did to me. Or maybe I only started to actually _think_ about the stuff he's done." The Faunus vigorously scrubbed his head, his thoughts carrying over to his actions.

"Maybe what Salem said about me was right." He stopped for a moment. "Maybe I should show Ozpin my _Wrath_."

…

 _CRUNCH!_ "Pyrrha are you ok?" The redhead blinked, turning in surprise to see who had spoken to her. Jaune, along the rest of her team, were looking at her with concern. More specifically, they were looking at her hand.

Pyrrha followed their gaze, seeing an absolutely crushed can of 'People Like Grapes' in her grasp. She had no idea what happened. She just suddenly felt a surge of anger, of rage… of _Wrath._ "I don't know what happened."

"I just, suddenly felt really angry at-" She cut herself off. Why was she mad at _Ozpin_ of all people? He was a lovely man, who cared deeply for his students. And he was a Headmaster. There was no reason to be angry at him.

"At something." Her emerald eyes shone with confusion. She was rarely a person to even get angry, even mildly annoyed was a stretch as far as she was concerned. "I'm not sure why."

The other three members of her team shared a glance, and nodded. "I've got an idea." Jaune spoke up. Pyrrha looked to her leader with a raised eyebrow. "Let's head to Vale. We can go to that café you mentioned."

Pyrrha stared at Jaune with practical hearts in her eyes, not that he would notice. "I'd love that." Nora sniggered at the pining, but didn't say anything.

"Alright then!" Jaune said with a smile. "Let's head into Vale, enjoy the few days we have before the festival, and just relax." With that, JNPR made their way out of the dorm, Ren stopping a moment to close the windows.

As he was closing them, he noticed a black bird standing on a branch of the tree near their dorm. It stared at him with beady red eyes. "The Gods must have a message for someone." The ninja said shortly, before closing the window, watching as the bird took off towards Vale.

He shrugged it off, idly going through his knowledge of birds in mythology. " _They say that raven's are a symbol of bad luck."_ He thought as he joined his comrades. " _But what bad could a raven bring to Vale?_

* * *

 _FINALLY FINISHED! So yeah Crue gets back and realises that maybe it's not such a good idea to tell Ozpin all that he knows, seeing as he would probably be locked up or worse if Ironwood knew about it._

 _Two things of note here: One, both Weiss and Crue are extremely touch-starved, hence that little bonding moment they had earlier and why neither really seemed interested in breaking it. Second thing, this story is a bit over two years old at this point! Amazing!_

 _Anyway, with the Mentis Arc finally over, (and thank you to all those who commented with their opinions and criticisms, they meant a lot) we can move onto Crue's actions during the Vytal Festival. With one claw down and a touch of pyromania, what's a Faunus to do?_

 _Anyway, I hope you've liked this chapter, if you have, let me know, and if you didn't, let me know anyway, and as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


	32. Fire In My Eyes

"Huh, so that's how they work." Crue muttered to himself, having taken apart a longneck lighter and laid the mechanism out. The Faunus was currently outside a small café, a mug of tea on his table and a bag of items to his side.

"Well they don't have gas that's for sure." Crue looked at the container that held the fuel for the lighter. It contained bright red Dust, which he knew from the classes he had to take was Fire Dust. There was also a smaller container adjoined to it, which from what Crue could tell held pressurised air.

"So the trigger opens the valve, and the air blows the Fire Dust up because it can't move on its own." He summarised. He grabbed a glove from his bag, and a roll of the closest thing to duct tape he could find.

"Now, do I want it to shoot from my palm or the back of my hand." As he was mulling it over, thinking about the different ways it could go wrong, he heard someone call out his name.

"Crue! Hey!" The Faunus turned his head, seeing JNPR walking towards him, Nora waving her hand wildly.

"Hey guys!" Crue smiled, turning his body to face them. "What're you doing here?"

"We're just here to hang for a bit." Jaune answered. "Pyrrha had been wanting to go to this place for a while." He nudged the redhead, causing her to blush and look away from her leader. "Did you get back from your mission?"

Crue nodded. "Yeah, just today." He grabbed the small menu on the table and handed it to Jaune as the team sat down. "It was pretty good. Cardin's less of a dick now."

"Ooh! What'cha making?" Nora sat down next to Crue, pushing up against the Faunus with interest, staring at the glove and deconstructed lighter. The others all sat down, staring at the Faunus' work curiously.

Crue opened his mouth to answer, but stopped. "Oh! This is great actually." He smiled, before coughing into his fist. "Ok, question for you all." He held up his hand.

"Do you think it'd be cooler to shoot fire from your palm?" He tapped his open hand, before forming a fist. "Or from the back of your wrist?"

"Palm." "Wrist." The group turned to look at Ren, the only one to answer 'wrist'. "Well, perhaps not cooler. But safer."

"No safety, we die like men." Crue retorted, much to Nora's amusement, the Valkyrie cheering as he got back to work. He strapped the container to the back of the glove as the others ordered their drinks.

JNPR began filling Crue in on the things he missed while he was away, such as Ruby making cookies, Weiss freezing the swimming pool-"We have a swimming pool?"-and an Ice Sculpture contest, for some reason.

"I fractured my leg for like, a day." Jaune continued, causing Crue to raise an eyebrow and look under the table. "Yeah it's better now. High Aura and all that."

"I'm sure." Crue replied in monotone, sitting at the table properly again. "How'd you fracture it?" He asked, finishing up with his glove, putting it on and checking how it fit.

"I tripped over one of Blake's candlesticks." The blonde shrugged. "It's ok though, I saw Ruby hit her in the face with a book." The statement caused Crue to spit out some of his tea, leaving a fine mist slowly escaping into the air.

"Did you record it?" Crue asked with utmost seriousness.

"No." Jaune replied sadly. "It was so sudden I could only appreciate it." Crue groaned, putting a hand on his chin and drumming his fingers against his cheek.

"Damn. I didn't see anything funny like that." He thought back to his trip. "Though I did get to ride on a giant robot." Nora and Jaune instantly gained interest, and even Ren raised a very inquisitive eyebrow.

"And I'm sure you had the perfect music to go with it." Pyrrha said in a teasing tone. Crue laughed, and took out his Scroll, planning to play the very song.

"As a matter of fact-" He stopped dead, staring at his Scroll. The others watched in curiosity and caution. There was a reflection in his Scroll, of the roof of the nearest building. And what was reflected terrified him.

He had to be sure. Crue did not go into the music app, instead activating his camera. Once he had confirmed what he had seen, he whirled around in his seat, staring up at the roof. JNPR followed his gaze, and instantly all of them were on their feet.

Atop the building was a figure with a black and red dress, a massive sheath with various colours hanging off their hip. A set of necklaces hung above a very definitive part of the body that alerted them this figure was female.

The most notable feature of the figure was the fearsome, full-face Grimm mask that completely hid their face. She put a hand on the hilt of her sword, clearly preparing to attack. "Get your wea-" Was all Crue was able to get out, before he lifted his arm and has thrown backwards.

Crue went flying into the street, causing several cars to screech to a halt and honk loudly. The noise of the horns was murder on the Faunus' ears, causing him to scream out. "SHUT IT! RUN AWAY!" There was a sound of something crashing, and Crue saw the table they were sitting at cut in half, and the members of JNPR flying backwards.

Crue ran forward instantly, helping Pyrrha to her feet, the closest to him. "Pyrrha! Are you ok?" The other members all stood to their feet, the figure before them swinging her sword confidently. "Call your-"

"We have. You should call yours." Pyrrha stood in front of Crue, protecting him from the intruder. "But please stay out of this." Crue looked aghast at the idea of not fighting alongside them. "I don't mean any offense. But your training hasn't had much to test against."

The other members of JNPR all stood next to Pyrrha, and in front of him. They were all protecting him, he realised. Defending him. Because he couldn't defend himself. Crue took a step back, hating that they were right. " _Neo was scared of her. And I couldn't beat her."_

But he knew there was no way they could defeat her. And absolutely no way _he_ could beat her. Their weapons would come. They would live. But he had to leave. He had to run-" _No." What?_ " _I'm not running!"_

The figure brought her sword back over her head, as Crue dashed forward under Pyrrha's arms, and raised his own. There was a scream of "NO!" from some member of JNPR, Crue's heart was beating too fast to figure out who.

The bright red sword swung down against Crue's arm. A deafening ' _CLAANG'_ echoed out, causing the eyes behind the mask to widen. "Bad move, Raven." Crue whispered, just low enough for only her to hear.

The realisation that Crue knew her name caused surprise and hesitation, and that hesitation cost her. There was a hissing noise by her stomach, and Raven looked down to see a glove spraying red Dust at her. Crue tensed as he pushed down on the igniter.

A massive explosion erupted once the electricity came into contact with the Dust. Both parties were thrown back several dozen feet, the difference being that Crue had Pyrrha and Nora catch him before he could go further.

"Ok. That was not a flamethrower." The Faunus groaned out, his ears ringing from the blast. "More of an Explosion-Thrower." He stared at his gloved hand, thinking of a name for it instantly. " _Borradh."_

"That was awesome! But we still have trouble." Jaune complimented, before turning to face the problem on two legs. Raven stood up from the rubble, and through her mask Crue could see piercing red eyes staring at him.

"She has to be White Fang." Jaune theorised, Crue deciding to remain quiet, figuring that it'd be easier if they didn't know Yangs complicated family life. "We've no idea what her intentions are. So it's just a case of keep her here until reinforcements arrive."

"You're our fearless leader for a reason." Ren said in complete monotone, taking a stance that truly showed his ninja features. Pyrrha stood next to Jaune, and Crue saw a black glow around her hands. Nora picked up a piece of the broken table, holding it like a hammer.

Crue was still in the back, but he had his glove ready, despite the obvious fact that he should run, he stayed to fight. Raven sheathed her sword, and dashed forward, directly for Crue. The Faunus jumped back immediately, throwing out his gloved hand and showering the area in front of him with Dust.

Raven skid to a halt, and had to dodge a wooden table trying to slam down on her, and moved out of the way of a jab that would have probably knocked her out. She brought out her sword and made to swing at Jaune, who was holding another table as a shield.

Her sword stopped mid-swing, and missed completely, allowing Jaune to bash the table against her mask. It barely phased her, instead grabbing the table and pushing it back, causing it to crash into Jaune, who in turn bumped against Pyrrha, causing her to lose focus with her Semblance.

Raven rushed forward, raising her sword high against Crue. The Faunus raised his arm once more, but there was no blow. Raven struck her sword into the ground, and used her momentum to swing her whole body into a kick that sent Crue crashing back into the café, thankfully devoid of civilians.

Crue managed to stand, grabbing onto one of the tables that was still left, the customers drinks still on it, seeing as they ran as soon as the fight started. He looked up to the fight, seeing Raven practically bat away team JNPR, before turning and staring right at him.

" _I-I can't beat her. They can't beat her and they're actually being trained to be Hunters."_ Crue backed up slightly, as Raven slowly stalked towards him. " _I can't fight like a Hunter, I've got barely any-"_ Crue halted his train of thought.

" _Oh. Duh."_ He realised something in that moment and time, which was lucky, as he had barely a moment left before Raven raised her sword. "So." Crue spoke calmly, which ever-so-slightly unnerved Raven.

"When Yang came out, was she a baby, or an egg?" Raven's eyes grew impossibly wide behind her mask, which only made Crue's next attack all the more effective. He grabbed one of the still hot drinks on the table behind him, and threw its contents across Raven's mask.

There was an instant cry of pain, and Crue used that moment to run, drawing Raven's ire and fire away from JNPR. " _I can't fight her like a Huntsman."_ Crue thought, as he slid into an alley, hearing Raven chasing after him.

" _So I'll fight her like an Irishman."_ Activating his Semblance, Crue ran up the wall of the alley, and kicked out at an air conditioner, causing it to tumble and fall below him. It was cut in two, but it still gave Crue enough time to get onto the roof of one of the buildings.

He almost slipped on the gravelled roof, but managed to run straight enough to not fall over. As he was running, he heard the crunch of gravel, and spun on his heel, dragging his foot on the ground.

He turned to face Raven fully, while kicking up an amount of gravel at her and into her eyes. She covered the eyeholes on her mask with her arm, momentarily blocking her view. Crue ran forward, bringing his fist back, and throwing it into Raven's stomach.

The Faunus heard a cough as Raven bent forward, her mask whacking off Crue's head. The Faunus staggered back, and found himself tripping due to something pulling his leg. He fell to the ground, and instantly felt a knee on his chest and a blade on his neck.

"Who are you?" It was the first words she had spoken in this entire battle. Crue stared up at the red eyes, which looked even redder due to his own actions.

"Wouldn't you like to know." Crue responded, and felt the blade move closer. " _Yeah probably shouldn't with her."_ He did not gulp in fear, instead choosing to stare Raven down.

"I would. I would also like to know how you know so much about me." Raven questioned, leaving a millimetre of room to disagree, that millimetre being the amount of space between Raven's sword and Crue's neck.

"You wouldn't believe me if I tol-." Crue responded. "Actually no fuck that cliché." He cut himself off, mildly surprising Raven. "I would tell you but you'd probably kill me because you'd think I've gone mad."

"I'm probably going to kill you anyway." Raven countered.

"Fair point." Crue accepted. "But you'll forgive me for not being so eager to talk with someone who abandoned their kid-" Raven pressed the blade a little closer "-and I really need to learn when to shut the fuck up."

"Yes. You do." Raven growled out. "And my relationship with my daughter is none of your concern. Nothing I do is any of your concern. You don't know what I've been it's like to be an outcast forced to-" "Outcast?" Crue cut Raven off, and for the briefest moment of time, the masked woman felt fear as eyes like steel bored into her own.

" _Outcast?"_ Crue pushed against the ground, his Aura working overtime to prevent the blade from cutting his neck. " **Outcast?!** " He stood to his full height, only an inch taller than Raven but it was enough that head able to look down on her.

" _ **OUTCAST?!**_ " He exclaimed, grabbing the blade of the sword and bringing it down across his knee, completely shattering it. " **What do you know about being an outcast?!** " He stepped forward, forcing Raven to take a step back.

" **I was an outcast growing up! I was an outcast in school! I was an outcast in the orphanage! I was always out of place! I still am! I was an outcast in my world! And this isn't** _ **even my world!**_ **"** Crue hissed every last syllable directly to Raven, while staring deep into her crimson eyes, forcing her to meet the steely blue eyes of a Wolf.

It was only as he was panting, that he realised what he had said aloud. Crue slapped his hand against his mouth, his eyes going wide as he lost any power over Raven. Even with this loss of power, she made no move against him.

"Not your worl- What does that mean!?" It was Raven's turn to step forward aggressively, but Crue shook his head, eyes wide and full of a terrifying realisation. The Faunus turned and ran, not knowing what else to do.

" _Where the hell are JNPR?!"_ He screamed within his mind as he ran. His answer came with four loud crashes, signalling that the lockers had finally arrived. Crue felt himself thrown to the ground at the same time, a grip strong as iron holding the back of his neck.

"You are going to tell me everything you know!" Raven breathed down his throat, a new blade piercing the ground near Crue's head.

Crue still had one hand closed against his mouth while on the ground, and shook his head violently. Before Raven could utter another threat, a bullet impacted her shoulder, causing her to hiss in pain. She turned to see Pyrrha aiming at her, and the other members of her team slowly climbing onto the roof.

"I'll be back here at midnight." Raven spoke quickly, heaving Crue up and holding him in front of her, using him as a shield. "If you aren't there, I will kill them." Crue's hand dropped as he stared at JNPR advancing towards Raven.

He couldn't let them die. He couldn't let anyone die. He can't. He won't. He can't- Any further thought the Faunus had was banished as he was hurled forward, being caught by Jaune as Raven jumped backwards into an alley, slashing at the ground as she fell.

Ren, Nora and Pyrrha were instantly at the drop, but when they got there, she was nowhere to be found. "You ok, Crue?" Jaune asked quietly, holding the Faunus steady.

"Yeah. Course." Crue answered, as though nothing was wrong. "Just another White Fang, right? She just caught me wrong is all." He played off any emotions he may currently be harbouring, acting like he always did, like everything's alright.

"Come on, let's go get- Pyrrha?" Crue cut himself off, staring at the Invincible Girl, who was currently shaking like a leaf. "Are you ok?" The rest of her team instantly converged on her, making sure she wasn't hurt.

"I-I'm not ok." She shook her head, and looked up to meet Crue's eyes, emerald and blue steel meeting in a moment of understanding that worried Crue greatly.

" _I'm afraid."_

…

 _Wow such a quick update I can't believe that I actually managed this. I know it's a short chapter but everything I wanted to happen in this chapter happened. Though I feel like I could have worded the 'Outcast' part a bit better._

 _So yes there is a lot to say here, but I'll leave that up to you to talk about. Ngl my computer crashed when writing this and I experienced Fear™. It all worked out though. Anyway, this chapter has quite a bit happening despite how short it is. Oh and shout out to HaterGrimm for calling the flamethrower. Nice job dude._

 _Regardless of its length, I hope you enjoyed, let me know if you did, and as always_

 _Until Next Time_

 _-Friday_


End file.
